


We're the Things that Love Destroys

by Eldritch_Exile



Category: Academia (Anthropomorphic), Buhay Kolehiyo, SSU, Sexy Sexy Universities
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Mafia AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-10-25
Packaged: 2019-02-26 03:05:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13226817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eldritch_Exile/pseuds/Eldritch_Exile
Summary: When a new crew comes into the city, Salle and Neo must learn to work together once again to keep and protect their own. But, it is difficult to work with someone who's every breath is a familiar ache, who you once swore never to work with again. Still, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, right?





	1. NOW: Like a Moth Getting Trapped in the Light by Fixation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Essi_Magwayen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Essi_Magwayen/gifts), [Cheyalinn_of_Tafth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cheyalinn_of_Tafth/gifts), [Gwyndolyn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gwyndolyn/gifts).



> Happy New Year!  
> Song For This Chapter: Irresistible

He could hear the steady tap of heels on hardwood floor and the steady hum of the air conditioner in the background. The door creaks open and the heels become muffled on the carpet of the board room. 

Neo opens his eyes and stares inquisitively at Mia. “What is it?” 

Mia throws a card on the table. Neo stares at the maroon card with only two lines in black on it telling them the date, time, and place. “A meeting?” Neo murmurs under his breath as he picks the card between his fingers and stares at it. “From Phil?” 

“Weird, huh?” Mia says with a chuckle and a shake of her head as she took one of the seats around the glass table. “He doesn’t do that unless it’s important.” 

Neo keeps turning the card over in his hands, slender fingers gentle as he folds the card and unfold it again. He drums his fingers on the table top before returning his gaze on Mia. “Did he send the invitation to everyone?” 

“Just the four, I think.” 

Neo’s expression sours, his lips turning down into a frown. “Great,” he says with a grimace. “I’ll get to see him again.” 

“Salle’s not that bad,” Mia says as she rolls her eyes at him. She examines her own fingernails, blowing at some dirt she had found on them. She tucks a loose strand of her hair behind her ear and looks at Neo in amusement. “You used to work together.” 

“Exactly,” Neo says with a sigh. He rests his elbow on the table and cradles his chin in his palm. He closes his eyes again and takes a deep breath. “This won’t be fun.” 

“Should I send Phil a message?” 

There was a staccato rhythm coming from Neo’s fingers continuously drumming over the table. He hums under his breath and smiles as he turns to Mia. “Tell them I accept. I’ll come to the meeting.” 

\-----

It was strange to meet in daylight when most of their work got done in the night. They were agents of shadows and stealth, and it felt wrong to be in full view of anyone. Salle is tearing the table napkin into pieces, its remains making a white pile over the plastic table of the fast food chain. Another strange thing. They could have met at any luxury hotel or restaurant yet they were in such a place.

Not that Salle was complaining since he could watch his rival and former partner get more and more irritated at the noise in the place. “Neo, just chill, dude,” Salle tells the other with a grin as he finally gives up on the table napkins. He starts picking at the fries he had ordered. “What? You too good for such a place?” 

Neo glares at him and shakes his head. He ignores the obvious taunt from the other man. “They’re running late.” 

Salle hums in agreement. “You’re closer to him. What’s this about?” 

“Phil didn’t say,” Neo says as he lean his head on the glass window of the diner. He crosses his legs and does the same with his arms over his chest. “I’m surprised you didn’t send anyone else in your place.” 

“Oh?” Salle grins at the other. “I don’t want to disappoint you, you know.” 

Neo scoffs at him. “Too late,” he mutters under his breath. 

Salle frowns but before he could say anything, two other people had already joined them in their booth. Both Phil and Tomas wore casual clothes like the other two but they look more tense and guarded as they took their seats. 

“Everything alright?” Salle asks, straightening in his seat. His hand reaches for his hip and twitches with something like restless energy. 

Tomas smiles and waves his hand, dismissing their concern. “It’s okay, isn’t it? The two of you got a chance to catch up.” 

Neo scowls. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

There was a sound of shrieking laughter and several children ran on the aisle right next to them. They could hear the sound of various people ordering and receiving their food on the nearby counters. It was hot outside, Neo thinks, as he presses his body closer to the glass window. He should be more wary. He should be more careful and guarded. Anything could happen with them being so visible like this. 

But, Salle’s presence still feels much like a stinging wound and he wants nothing more than to get away from his former partner. 

“Nothing,” Tomas says. “You were partners before, weren’t you?” 

“A long time ago,” Salle says with a careless laugh. Neo shoots a look at him, wondering why he was treating it as something so simple. It was as if their partnership breaking up was something that was merely an inconvenience he could tolerate. “Neo didn’t want me anymore.” 

Phil frowns at them. “But, can you still work together?” 

“You’re not getting me to do anything,” Salle says as he stretches his body languorously beside Neo in a way that reminds Neo of a cat. “Not unless I want to.” 

Neo nods. “We’re equals,” he says absently like he was simply repeating an old adage, a saying that was half-remembered. “We bow to no one but ourselves.” 

“That’s what this is about,” Phil says as he folds his hands over the table. Beside him, Neo watches Tomas yawn and lean back on his own seat. “We have trouble.” 

“Trouble?” Neo asks as he leans forward to hear better. Tomas rises from his seat, turning his back to them to order something. To anyone else, the four of them might have looked like any group of friends out for chat, not knowing the those four had hands so stained in blood. 

“Newcomers,” Phil sighs and rubs the back of his neck. There are bandages wrapped around his forearm that has Neo wondering if he has hurt himself on a job or training the new recruits. “They have been trying to take our territories.” 

Salle growls under his breath. “The city is ours.”

Neo blinks and turns to look at Salle. There is a sudden tension in his shoulders and the way he slouches in his seat seems more like a hunter waiting to pounce. Neo is sure that the other had weapons hidden somewhere and they cannot afford to make a scene. Unconsciously, or perhaps out of habit, he reaches out and places a hand on Salle’s back, rubbing comforting circles on it until he feels him relax. 

Neo sees Phil’s amused and all too piercing look and he snatches his hand away from his former partner. Phil acts like he wasn’t just looking at them like some science experiment and looks around the room. “The city is ours,” Phil says as he looks at them both with a small smile on his face. “Which is why there will always be people who want to take it.” 

“We dealt with it before,” Neo says. Salle shifts beside him and Neo fights the urge to reach out with a hand to settle him. “What makes this so different?” 

“They’ve wrecked a couple of our warehouses already and some of our informants have gone missing. I sent some people to check on it before and the results were not pretty,” Phil grimaces and shifts in his seat. There is a grim set to his mouth that wasn’t there before. Neo doesn’t like it when Phil gets like this. It is too much like talking to another person entirely.

“They intercepted one of my shipments,” Tomas says as he joins them with a tray of food. Phil reaches for a burger as Tomas continues speaking. “That was some loss.” 

“You want me to take them out?” Salle asks. Too eagerly, Neo thinks, as he watches the other lean forward. 

Phil shakes his head but doesn’t answer, still chewing his mouthful of food. 

Tomas yawns. “Chesca doesn’t want to, Salle.” 

Phil swallows. “Too dangerous,” he says. “We need to go about this together.” 

“You want the two of us to work together again?” Neo asks, remembering Phil’s words from moments ago. Neo feels Salle freeze up beside him but spares him no mind. “You think they’re that dangerous?” 

“We don’t have enough information to know for sure,” Phil argues and sighs. He rubs at his eyes and Neo could see the tired look in them, the slight slump in the other’s shoulders. “I’ll try to get more but the two of you should watch out.” 

Tomas hums. “They could target the two of you next.” 

Phil leans his head back and closes his eyes. “And think about what I said.” 

“Well, that’s on Neo,” Salle says with a snort. “So, that’s it? Can I leave?” 

“Why? You have somewhere more important to go to?” Neo shoots back, irritation coloring his words. 

“Sure, dude, yeah,” Salle says with a laugh. “It’s Thursday, remember? It’s my night. People to see, places to go, people to kill, drinks and fun to have. You should come.”

Neo scoffs but Salle only grins. “Your loss,” the assassin says as he leans down and whispers to his old partner’s ear. “I’ll just have enough fun for the both of us, huh?” 

\-----

It has been a long time since he was in a proper job, Salle thinks to himself as he looks down on the sight of his rifle, watching the proceedings of the party from his scope. Even from across the street, he feels the life of it, burning in the strobe lights and echoing through the thumping bass that was an undercurrent to it all. 

Salle breathes out and watches his target move across the room. His finger is poised over the trigger ready to take a shot. His target takes a seat and Salle takes another breath, waiting for the right moment. He freezes mid-motion as his target slumps in his chair, dead but not with Salle’s shot.

He curses under his breath and starts surveying the scene, looking for the culprit to the crime that should have been his. 

He finds another window across the street, to the left of the building where the party was held. He sees a glint and only has a moment to realize his mistake before he’s ducking to avoid being shot. He curses again and keeps his head down as he packs up his rifle and starts crawling to the exit. 

Salle thinks of Phil’s warning that morning, thinks of Neo beside him and how Salle was not the only one that hasn’t been targeted yet. 

When he reaches the ground level of the building, he finds that someone has slashed the tires of his motorbike. He hears footsteps and sees shadows on concrete before he is rounding the corner away from his pursuers. He reaches for the earpiece he keeps in his pocket for any emergency situations. Salle has worked alone since Neo but he wasn’t stupid. He had plans for when shit hit the fan. 

“Kuya?!” His sister, Cessie, seems amused and surprised at the same time. Salle wouldn’t blame her. He rarely checked up on the people currently working on their intel when he was on a job. “What happened with the job?” 

“Someone got there first,” Salle says as he manages to duck into a crowded bar without any of his pursuers catching up with him first. There is static from the other end of the line and he thinks Cess might be shifting in her seat. He hasn’t told her, he thinks, about the meeting that morning and what they talked about. She doesn’t know that this might be trouble. “I’m going back to base. Check up on Neo, will you?” 

“Why?” Cess says, now more confused than anything. “Is Kuya Neo involved in this?” 

He might be, Salle thinks with dread. Or maybe, Salle is still too fucking high on adrenaline to think clearly. Maybe he was overthinking this. There hasn’t been another gang that was able to challenge them in this city for ages. Why would there be one now? Why was he so fucking worried? 

“Shit, fuck,” Salle says as he orders a drink from the bartender. He could use one while he sorts it out. He places two fingers over his earpiece. “Forget it. He can take care of himself.” 

“Kuya,” Salle knows he isn’t imagining the warning tone in his sister’s voice. “Are you fighting with Kuya Neo again? What happened?” 

“Nothing,” Salle takes the bottle of beer and pays for it. He takes a swig as he moved around the bar, taking care not to draw attention to himself. He can let his trail run cold for now before he goes back, before he bothers thinking about someone else. “I might not be back until later.” 

He hears an indignant noise from Cess before he removes the earpiece. It quickly goes back to his pocket to be used when he needs to and he clutches at the strap of his bag. His rifle is a steady weight inside of it, familiar and comforting. 

He finishes the bottle and leaves it on a table on his way out. There is someone he needs to see. He needs to if he was going to ever find it in him to sleep tonight.

\-----

Salle doesn’t know what he expects to see when he strides into Neo’s home base. The penthouse apartment that Neo keeps for his business operations is too orderly, too sparse, too much like an office for Salle to like it. He scrunches up his nose as soon as he walks in. 

The only saving grace he could see, really, is the floor to ceiling windows that looked over the city. Salle has no doubt that they are bullet proof even when this building was one of the tallest in the city with no sniping point anywhere near it. Neo would make sure of it. He was always careful. Salle was the reckless one. Salle was the one who got them into trouble and Neo always got them out. 

“Salle,” Mia says as she comes into the room. “What are you doing here?” 

Salle laughs. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in our base? You’re one of mine, aren’t you?” 

Mia rolls her eyes. “Oh, please,” she says as she takes some steps to close the distance between them. “Stop it. It’s like we don’t know each other at all.” 

Salle sighs. “Where’s Neo?” 

“He wouldn’t want to see you?” 

“Did he tell you that?” 

“Do you think he needs to?” Mia crosses her arms over her chest. “Everyone knows about you two. Are you here to get your act together?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Phil is a friend too, you know.” Mia says, her manicured fingers tapping her arm. “I know about our problem in the city.” 

“I bet you do,” Salle says. He tries to step around her but she simply matches his movements. “Mia, let me pass. I need to talk to him. You don’t know what it’s about.” 

“So, what is it about?” Neo steps into view from one of the rooms, walking with the careful, silent steps that Salle recognizes from their jobs together. They glare at each other for a moment before Salle breaks eye contact. Neo smiles frigidly. “Well?” 

“Nothing,” Salle finally says, stepping away from them. “I’m being stupid.” 

Neo laughs. “Is that so? What a surprise,” he deadpans. “Get it out, Salle. I have no time for your bullshit tonight.”

“You still pulling that heist tomorrow?” 

“Why do you care?” 

Salle tries to keep his posture casual, putting his hands in his pockets and slouching languidly. He could tell it doesn’t quite fool either of them. “I’m saying I can be your backup.” 

Mia covers her laugh with a hand on her mouth. Neo glares at him again and Salle could see irritation in his features. A part of him can’t help but miss the times when he could just reach out to soften the lines on his face. “Are you insulting me?” Neo asks and there is a deadly edge to his voice. Salle finds his hand reaching unconsciously for a weapon but drops it to his side as soon as he realizes. 

“No,” he answers. His hand twitches, longing for the weight of a gun and he thinks it might have been a mistake to come here. He hasn’t in a while and tonight might have been nothing but an unfortunate accident. Neo can take care of himself. He doesn’t need Salle. Never has. He doesn’t know what to say, cannot find the words to bridge the strange gap. “I’m not. Just thought we should listen to Phil for once, you know.” 

“I doubt that,” Neo says, his hand resting on one of his polished tables. Everything in this room seems that way, polished and controlled and everything that Salle was not. “It’s not like you.” 

“Fine,” Salle says with a sneer. “Just thought I’d offer. Being nice and all.” 

Neo blinks and Salle thinks about how fucking unfair it was that Neo has always been better at keeping a straight face. He never wins against him. Not in this. “Leave, then,” Neo tells him and Salle winces at the cold emptiness in his tone. 

A part of him regrets coming. A part of him is angry and wants to lash out. A part of him wonders what happen to them both. Another just doesn’t care. He clenches his hands into fist. “Fine,” he says. “But, if you end up in trouble tomorrow, it’s not on me.” 

“Not everything is about you, Salle,” Neo says and he turns on his heel, his back disappearing into a room. 

Mia looks like she wants to laugh and frown at the same time. She settles for giving him a pitying look. “I know Phil said this seems like trouble,” Mia said. “But the gang that’s coming after us? I’m sure Neo can handle them.” 

“Phil says they took out several of our men.” 

Mia laughs and tosses her hair over one shoulder. She smirks at him and there is something piercing about her gaze. “Our Neo is not like other men,” she says and he laughs at that, laughs at how cliche and absurd it all is. 

“Whatever,” he says with a careless shrug and a mirthless laugh. “I’ll just get back home. I don’t need him either.” 

Before he leaves, Salle realizes that Mia is also much better at him at hiding their thoughts. Or maybe he is still to used to seeing others from behind a scope and long distances. He might as well just sleep it off. Tomorrow, he can work on getting rid of their enemies. With or without Neo’s help. He doesn’t need him either. 

\-----

Neo carefully lowers his feet on the ground and breathes a small sigh of relief when no alarms ring out. Don’s voice seem amused despite the deadpan it was delivered with. “Did you think I’d fail?” 

Neo smiles. Don was a good friend although the other was really one of Phil’s men. He was still willing to help Neo out now and again though. “Of course not,” he says as he proceeds to open the door to the hallway. “Where to now?” 

“Left,” Don says. The comm buzzes and Neo frowns. “Go, Neo. The guards are doing their rounds soon.” 

Neo walked towards the end of the hallway. The serum that he was supposed to steal was deeper into the building and he needed access to the elevator. He stopped at the edge of the corner and pressed himself on the wall when Don warned him of guards around the corner. “How many of them?” 

“Just two,” Don said. “You can take them. Get their card from them and get into the elevator.” 

Neo turns the corner and surprises the two guards. He manages to shoot one before either of the two even draw their gun. The other had drawn his gun but Neo kicks it out of his hand and manages to take him out with his pistol. He finds a security card on the first guard’s pocket and moves down the hall towards the elevator. 

“Five floors down, Neo,” Don says in his ear and Neo nods. He is five steps from the elevator when alarms ring out through the building. He hears Don’s curse in his ear before the other tells him to abandon the job. “There are guards coming, Neo. Get out of there.” 

Don mutters about backup as Neo runs. Neo wonders where they could possible get one. They were miles away from any of their crew’s headquarters and they did not bring anyone else on this job. He rounds a corner only to see guards coming to him. Someone shoots and he ducks to avoid it. There is crackle of static in his ear and a new voice greets him. 

“I’ll be there in five,” Salle says in his ear and Neo fights the urge to curse him. He knows when he needs help. He knows not to turn it away. 

Neo runs, slipping past the guards that block his way. They startle just as he hears a new voice in his head. “Neo, two-four-two-one.” 

Neo takes two steps to make a full turn and face the guards. They have drawn their guns but Neo’s movements does not falter. His mind is in sharp focus and there are four guards facing him. He hears Don tell him there are more coming but for the moment, the only ones he needs to pay attention to are the four in front of him.

He takes the four steps towards the guards in a serpentine pattern. They shoot at him but he weaves and ducks and if any of the bullets have hit him, it hasn’t registered yet. It takes two steps and two bullets to get two of them down. 

There is a cry that Neo ignores and one of them lunges at him, a knife in his outstretched hand. Neo takes one step back and watches the man stop short with a bullet to the head. 

The last guard shoots at him but Neo has moved even before Salle had sniped the other guard. Neo drops to a crouch and tackles the man to the ground. He pulls his knife from his belt and slices it across the guard’s throat. 

Neo takes a moment to breathe. He listens to the muffled shots of a rifle and remembers exactly why the two of them made a great team back in the day. Salle is silent and Neo closes his eyes. 

“You need to move,” Don says and Neo wrenches himself out of his reverie. He stands, still listening for the sounds of shooting. 

Salle laughs in his ear. “Got them,” he says in a singsong. “You can go now, Neo. We’ll meet back at the base.” 

Neo sighs and nods his head. His mind is still locked in the same calm it was in when he killed. He knows that it will be different later. Later, he will have to face his old partner about this. He cannot allow Salle to simply interfere in his jobs. Later, there will be hell to pay for them both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work Title comes from American Beauty/American Psycho by Fall Out Boy  
> All the chapter titles would come from that album.


	2. THEN: 'Til We're Saints Just Swimming in our Sins Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once, they were partners. 
> 
> Once, they had each other's back and had someone to catch them when they fall. 
> 
> Looking back, perhaps it was better to live in the past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Song: Twin Skeleton's (Hotel in NYC) by Fall Out Boy

Once, they were partners. 

The blade was glinting under the light of the single bulb in the warehouse. The body tied on the chair in the middle of the room was still in death, blood dripping and pooling on the floor. The knife that had killed the traitor was held over Salle’s throat by his own partner. 

The sniper smirked at the other boy. Neo gave him a cold look. “Explain it to me again,” Neo gritted out the order. 

Salle shrugged. “He wasn’t going to tell us anything.” 

“Of course not,” Neo snapped, hand gripping the hilt of the knife tighter. He looked livid. His knuckles were turning white with the strength of his grip. Somewhere in the background, they can hear the sound of an engine dying just outside the warehouse. “You killed him before we got anything.” 

“Too fucking bad, right?” 

The sound of heels on the stone floor echoed around them. The boys turned their heads to see Mia remove her fingers from the captive’s neck where she had been checking his pulse. She clicked her tongue at them. “She wouldn’t be pleased about this.” 

Neo made a frustrated noise before tossing the knife into the darkness of the warehouse. “Have Chesca talk to Salle about it,” he snarled as he left to go outside. “He was the one who decided it all on his own.” 

Salle watched the other go with a wide grin on his face. The grin fell as Mia leveled a hard look on him. “Are you always so intent on getting on his nerves?” 

“He makes it so easy, Mia,” Salle drawled. “What do you expect me to do?” 

“Behave?” Mia said as she pulled her gloves over her hands once again. “Your sister does well enough in that regard. Why can’t you?” 

“Cause it’s too easy not to?” Salle shrugged. He placed his boots on the edge of the seat and tipped the chair over, the corpse falling into the floor. Salle looked it over with bored eyes. “I guess I’ll have to clean up, huh?” 

“And apologize,” Mia said, crossing her arms over her chest. 

Salle gave her a dull look before he rolled his eyes. 

“Is the best assassin in the city really being this childish?” 

“Please, Mia,” Salle said with a startled laugh. “We all know you have some hidden talents.” 

“Are you saying I’m better than you?” 

“Ha,” Salle shook his head as he fished for his phone. He used its torch to find the knife where Neo had tossed it. He used it to release the dead from its position on the chair. He stopped and sighed where he was crouched over the body. “Who knows? Neo seems to think you’d be a better partner.” 

“Ah, so you’re jealous then,” Mia said. 

Salle heaved the body, carrying it over his shoulder like a sack of rice. “Are you fucking kidding me?” He grinned at her. “I don’t get jealous.”

\-----

“Neo,” Salle drawled as he slung an arm around Neo. “I said I’m sorry.”

“Shut up,” Neo snapped. “I’m trying to write the report on our assignment since you refused to do it.” 

Salle hummed and turned his head, burying his nose in Neo’s soft hair. He raised his head and rested his chin on the other’s head, ignoring Neo’s little irritated noises. “I’m not good at it,” Salle complained. “You know that.” 

The sound of Neo’s typing stopped. “Then, at least let me do it in peace?” 

“No way,” Salle said. “Who will I talk to then?” 

“Find someone,” Neo huffed. “There’s bound to be someone free in the base.” 

“Everyone’s pissed at me,” Salle said as he yawned and stretched his arms over his head. He stood up and laid down on the couch where he could still look over Neo’s shoulder and at the laptop he was working on. “That bastard wouldn’t have told us anything. I was just saving us the trouble. Don’t you trust me?” 

Neo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Salle,” he said. The other stiffened at his name and looked worriedly at his partner. Neo was not looking at him, though, still staring at the document open on his laptop. “You trust me, don’t you?” 

“What? Aren’t you just repeating my question?” 

“Answer it.” 

“Yeesh,” Salle groaned. “Yeah, of course.” 

“Good,” Neo said with a nod. “Then, next time, trust me when I tell you not to do something. I trust you enough to follow your orders in combat, do the same with mine when we’re in a situation outside of it.” 

“So, what I’m hearing is,” Salle said, slowly. “I’m useless outside of fighting?” 

“Good, you understand,” Neo said with a chuckle at Salle’s indignant muttering. “It’s simple, isn’t it?” 

“I hate you, Neo.” 

Neo laughed again and leaned back until his head was resting on Salle’s stomach. Salle was still lying down on the couch and he carded his fingers through Neo’s hair, his touch gentle and light, betraying his words from mere moments ago. “Of course you do,” Neo murmured after a while. Salle blinked. He had forgotten what he had said and what the agreement from the other meant. 

Salle shook his head and sighed. “I’ll follow your orders next time.” 

Neo turned his head and smiled at him. “Good,” he whispered. Right then, Salle believed that he would follow any orders if Neo would keep on smiling at him like that. It made him forget about what kind of people they were. It always did.

\-----

“I have a job for you,” Cess said as she entered the break room. Salle was seated next to Mappy as they played a racing game on their consoles. He paused it and leaned back, throwing his arm over the back of the couch to look at his sister. “You up for it, kuya?”

“Talk to Neo about it,” Salle said with a grin. “He decides for us outside of combat apparently.” He snorted and rolled his eyes as they returned to the game. Mappy managed to bump his car out of the track and Salle cursed, glaring at the other boy. He heard the sound of Cess leaving the two of them to their game and catching up with Faye in their small kitchen. 

The two of them were silent in their seats until the race finished, Mappy in first place. “Well, I’m pretty sure you hacked the game and cheated.” Salle grumbled under his breath as he threw the controller on the coffee table. Several of the bullets scattered on top of it rolled to the carpeted floor. 

“You should fix your things,” Mappy said. “Someone’s going to slip on bullets.” 

Salle snorted. “The fuck are they doing then?” 

Mappy laughed. “Will you do it if it was Neo who asked?” 

Salle laughed and reached for his drink. The cup of coffee was still warm and he could taste the liberal amount of alcohol he added into it. “Not fair,” Salle said. “You know that we have a deal.” 

“What deal, kuya?” Cess had come back and she kicked lightly at Salle’s leg to get him to move. She sat by the arm of the chair, leaning into it as she rested her legs over her brother’s lap. “I heard Kuya Neo got angry with you for the stunt you pulled.” 

“It was hardly a stunt!” Salle exclaimed, indignant. “I just killed a guy. We do it almost every day.” 

“Well, the guy had information we could really use. You know, we need to shut down that new organization.” Mappy said as he rubbed his eyes under his glasses. “Phil’s angry too, you know. It’s a lot of work we have to do cause of it.” 

“See, kuya,” Cess said. “Maybe Kuya Neo’s right. You have to listen to him when you’re not in a fight.” 

Salle watched as Mappy nodded in agreement. “He is a better negotiator.” 

Salle made an irritated noise. “I get it, okay!? Can everyone just forget it?” 

They heard the footsteps of people coming in and Phil stood over them behind the couch. He pressed a heavy hand down Salle’s head. “Did I hear you right? Just forget it? You just gave me so much work, Salle.” 

Salle growled and slapped Phil’s hand away. “So? It’s your job to get information anyway.” 

“Sometimes, I wonder how Neo could ever deal with you,” Phil said with a hand resting on one hip and another massaging his temple. “He’s looking for you, by the way. I heard Deckard gave him a job for the two of you to do.” 

Salle laughed and managed to untangle himself from the other two on the couch. “Alright, I’ll go find him.” 

Phil placed a hand on his shoulder before he could leave the room. “Salle,” he said in a warning tone. “Remember that the only reason you’re being entrusted for this job is because Neo spoke in your defense.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I fucking get it, alright?!” Salle snapped. “I fucked up and I owe Neo. That’s what partners are for, isn’t it? So we can fix each other’s fuck ups?” 

“Well, it’s not much of a partnership, is it, if it’s only one partner who’s adjusting and fixing the other’s mistakes?” 

Someone, perhaps Mappy made a low whistling sound. Maybe, it wasn’t Mappy at all. Salle wasn’t sure but he could surely feel the presence of all the others in the break room and all their eyes on them. He glared at Phil then at all of them. “Fuck off,” he snarled. “I’m not dependent on him.” 

“I didn’t say that,” Phil smirked. “You did.” 

Salle didn’t say a word as he turned and left the room. Cess leaned back on her seat on the couch and looked at Phil with something cold and sinister in her eyes even though her body language spoke of the same laidback, and careless girl she usually acted like. “That was cruel, Kuya Phil,” she said. “Harsh.” 

“Your brother needs a wake up call.” 

“Still,” Mappy said as he took up one of the controllers again and navigated through the game on the screen. “That was still something.” 

“And he is my brother,” Cess said. Then, she smiled, and the tense and terrifying aura around her was gone as she picked up the other controller and challenged Mappy to a round.

\-----

“Stop fidgeting, Salle,” Neo warned the other as he looked at him from the corner of his eye. Neo was seated on the driver’s seat in their car, fingers tapping a steady rhythm on the steering wheel as they waited for their contacts to show up.

“I can’t help it,” Salle growled. He crossed his arms over his chest, shifted, then changed his position and sat over his hands. “Everyone seems to think I’m going to fuck up again.” 

Neo eyed him curiously. “Everyone?” 

“Phil says the only reason I’m being entrusted with a job is because I’m with you,” Salle grumbled under his breath. “It’s like I can’t take care of myself.” 

Neo hummed. “Well, Phil’s upset you gave him more work. Mia also told me Chesca was quite angry at you. Both of us, actually.” 

Salle placed his hands on the dashboard. There was a dark look in his eyes and the car was silent for several heartbeats as Neo had stopped drumming his fingers on the wheel. Salle leaned back on his seat, stretching his legs out in front of him. “Hey, Neo?” He ventured out. 

“What?” 

Salle opened his mouth to say something but before he could, they saw the headlights heading for them in the distance. They looked at each other and nodded in agreement before they got out of the car. There were storage crates all around them and Salle could almost imagine that the port was like a city within a city, the crates forming the buildings with the streets in between them. He could smell the stench of the ocean and he wrinkled his nose as he stood just a bit behind Neo. 

Neo buttoned his suit jacket and checked the time on his silver wristwatch. It glinted for a moment as the car that was coming towards them screeched to a halt, its headlights still on them like a spotlight on a stage. 

A woman came out from the passenger side of the car, followed by two bodyguards. Salle looked them over, noting the way they stood and where they kept their weapons. He felt like a live wire just waiting for the right moment. 

“You’re late,” Neo said, voice calm and even. He looked sharp and composed even within this walls of steel storage crates and concrete alleys. They heard the sound of a ship in the distance. If Salle just turned his head slightly to the left, he would see the lights of the harbor fair near the mall and the ferris wheel where they had that shoot out last month. He turned his eyes back to their business at hand. 

“I have it here,” the woman said, raising the briefcase she carried. Salle cocked his head and wondered what it was they were here for again. He thought he never asked. He should have asked. “What about your side of the agreement?” 

Neo shrugged. “We will have the money wired to you once we confirm that you gave us the right plans.” 

The woman pressed her lips to a thin line and gave a tight nod. She made a gesture as if she was going to hand over the case and Salle moved to reach it until she kept it from his reach. He gave her an amused look and she narrowed her eyes at them. “And if you double cross me?” 

Neo smirked. “Oh, please, you should expect no problems as long as you’ve done as we’ve asked. Otherwise, well.” Neo trailed off and Salle cracked his knuckles. It might have been too much of a threat for the bodyguards behind her tensed but she made no move. “This city belongs to us. You would do well to stay on our good side.” 

She nodded again. This time, she let the case go to Salle. They watched the woman and her goons depart, the empty space of the port going dark once again. “Do you think she gave us the right stuff?” 

“Of course,” Neo said. “She’ll regret it otherwise.” 

“Plans,” Salle licked his lips, almost embarrassed at the question. “What are the plans for again?” 

Neo chuckled before it turned into full-blown laughter. “What? You really didn’t know what we’re here for?” 

“Fine,” Salle snapped. “I’m the idiot. So, what is it?” 

“Remember the exhibit that’s coming to the city next month?” 

Salle nodded. “The lost artifacts they excavated?” 

“That’s right,” Neo smiled at him. “Worth a lot to many private collectors willing to buy it off the black market. We’ll acquire it for them.” Neo raised the case as they headed back to their car. “This is how,” he said. “Security plans from one of the museum’s curators. Easy as pie.” 

Neo stashed the case in the backseat of the car and Salle watched him with his arms folded on the roof, his chin resting on the folded arms. “Say, you enjoy art, don’t you, Neo?” 

Neo shrugged. 

“I’m guessing you do since you steal a lot of them,” Salle said with a grin. 

“Well, they’re usually not for me,” Neo said, as he looked at Salle over their car. “Why do you ask?” 

“You’re gonna need to take a look at the museum in person before the heist, don’t you?” Salle said. “Wanna go together?” 

Neo smirked. “What, like a date?” At Salle’s sudden flushing of cheeks, Neo laughed. “Maybe. I’m sure I can make some time for my partner. Besides, it’s still a job, isn’t it?” 

“Sure,” Salle agreed. “It’s just another ruse.” 

“Don’t kill anyone this time,” Neo gave him a serious look before he went inside the car.

Salle threw his head back and laughed before following Neo into the car. He was looking forward to their next job.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story will be alternating between the past and the present. So, we're going back to the present next chapter.


	3. NOW: Some Turn to Dust or to Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plans are put into motion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Song: Centuries

“I didn’t need your help,” Neo snarls as he pushes past Salle and into his penthouse. Salle follows without invitation and Neo throws a glare over his shoulder. The penthouse is empty so late into the night and Salle is sure that Neo had dismissed his members for the night. “It wasn’t your job to take.” 

“Really?” Salle scoffs. He walks around the penthouse, inspecting stuff along the way. He tilts a vase that was certainly worth millions and peers inside, feigning interest. “I’m pretty sure they would have killed you. Or captured you which would be worse.” 

Neo scowls at him. “Are you calling me incompetent?” 

“No,” Salle grins. “I’m just saying you can’t always be perfect, love.” 

“Don’t give me that excuse,” Neo glares. He seems to have accepted that he wouldn’t be able to get rid of Salle and he removes his shoes before sitting on one of the elegant couches around the room. “You just wanted to have a little fun again. Just like always.” 

“Hey,” Salle says in protest. He moves restlessly around the room like he couldn’t get rid of his extra energy. A side-effect of the adrenaline from the job, Neo thinks. Just like always, he had said, and he means it. Salle had always been like this after a job. Salle stops by one of the large windows overlooking the city and he places his hand flat on top of the glass. “I just wanted to help you.” 

“I told you--” Neo stops as he is interrupted by a frustrated noise from the other man in the room.

“Why is it so hard to believe that I just wanted you to be safe?” Salle says with a glare at his direction. The sniper paces the floor of the penthouse as he makes gestures with his arguments. “You didn’t listen last night so I had to call in some favors. Then, I found out you were going through this dangerous heist with just yourself? I thought I was supposed to be the stupid one between us.” 

“I could have done it by myself.” 

“Maybe if we didn’t have enemies sabotaging us, you would have,” Salle says. He stops by one of the windows again and just stares outside. Neo couldn’t help but think that the other was avoiding meeting his eyes. “We need to help each other.” 

Neo snorts in disbelief. “Since when did you start following orders?” He stands up with a sigh and heads to the bar on the side of the room. He rummages through the cabinets for a glass. He pauses for a moment before taking another one out and pouring them both a generous amount. “You never have.” 

“You could have been killed tonight,” Salle says as he turns around and finally faces Neo. It is, Neo thinks, perhaps the first time in the night that Salle has looked directly at him like that. His eyes look fierce in the dim light of the penthouse and he looks murderous. He looks like how he might have behind the scope when he took out Neo’s enemies for him. 

Neo shrugs and sips his drink. “It’s something we all face in our work. What difference does it make?” 

Salle doesn’t answer. His eyes flick back to watch the city before it returns to look at the bar. “Is that drink for me?” 

Neo waves a hand to it. “You’re welcome,” he says. “So? Are you going to answer?” 

Salle walks to the bar and finishes his glass in one long drink. Neo looks unimpressed as he refills the glass. “I don’t want you to die.” 

“I don’t want you to either,” Neo answers and sips. “The crew still needs its best sniper, after all.” 

“Is that all?” 

“What else is there?” Neo asks. There is a familiar burn in his throat as he finishes his drink. Salle hasn’t changed at all, he thinks. It’s still too easy to hit his sore spots. “I guess you’re one of the four executives. We’ll need to replace you if you die. Bothersome. But then, I always had to clean up your mess anyway. What’s the difference?” 

Salle looks angry for moment but he schools his feature to something calmer. Neo thinks it might be Cessies’ influence. Good, at least he’s learning. “Sorry for bothering you then, huh?” Salle gives him a wry smile. Neo refills his empty glass once again. “I forgot how prickly you are.” 

“Prickly?” 

Salle drains his glass and grins at him. “Like picking roses from a garden.” With that mocking tone, Salle raises his glass in a salute or a toast. “To you, Neo, and your ever perfect principles. May you never be the fuck up that I am.” 

Before Neo can react, Salle throws the glass across the room. He smirks at Neo. “Another mess of mine for you to clean, I guess.” Salle shrugs and his smile widens as he echoes Neo’s words back to him. “Just like always.” 

Neo’s hands itches to have a weapon in them, to press Salle to the wall and remind of his place, of their place, of why exactly they have gotten to the point they were now. Instead he places them, flat on the surface of the bar just like Salle had placed his hand on top of the glass windows. Salle moves across the room and Neo watches the door shut as the sniper leaves the penthouse.

\-----

It doesn’t take much convincing to get Phil to send Neo all the information they have on the group that was trying to take over their territory. There isn’t much of it, Neo thinks, as he sifts through the files that had been sent.

As far as they were concerned, there seem to be eight of them they were facing. It wasn’t much but Phil had theory that they were part of a bigger group that was just establishing new territory in their city. In which case, Neo thinks, they might be in bigger trouble than they expect. If it was him, he would have sent some of his best people to take over new territory. 

He sighs and closes his laptop. He yawns and stretches his arms over his head. There is a knock on the door which he acknowledges with an order to come in. 

Addie comes in and looks around the room in worry. She has a cup of coffee which she places on his desk. “I heard about last night,” she says and Neo tries for a comforting smile before he reaches for the cup. “I’m glad you’re alright.” 

“I am, too,” Neo chuckles and takes a sip. He replaces the cup on the table and offers her the chair across the desk. “Did you tell everyone to be careful from now on?” 

Addie nods. She shifts on her chair and flushes. Neo wonders what the problem is, if there is any, in their operations. “Salle has been calling.” 

Neo tenses for a second but he forces himself to relax. There was no reason to make a big deal out of it. If anything, he knew Addie would keep the other away if Neo asks for that. It feels cruel to all of them, though, and Neo sighs. “What does he want?” 

“He says you should do a job together again.” 

“I don’t want to,” Neo says. He presses a hand on his forehead. It is difficult to hold down his temper but forces it to heel. It was something, he thinks in amusement, that Salle never mastered. “Tell him that.” 

“I did,” Addie says. She seems uncomfortable and Neo waits in silence for her to continue, knowing there was more to this than what she was saying. “Then, sir Deckard called.” 

Neo freezes at that. It has been a long time since their two directors, the bosses of the crew, had to check on him. Not since he became one of the four executives. They were the only ones, really, that were considered above him in the hierarchy of the crew. “What did he say?” Neo carefully says as he turns the cup of coffee on the saucer. 

“Same thing,” Addie says with an apologetic smile. “He wants you to work with Salle. He says he’ll have Phil send you the details.” 

Neo sighs. “Alright,” he says. He takes another long drink from the coffee. It is hot enough to scald his tongue but he doesn’t mind. It keeps him focused. “Any news on our new heist?” 

Addie nods. “I’m working on the plan with Letty. Should we postpone it until after your job?” 

Neo leans back on his seat and stares at the ceiling. “No,” he murmurs. “Continue planning. Get what you need. Ammo or mercenaries or whatever. Get Iya on it and get Salle to send some of his fighters. We don’t know if we’ll get a problem in this too.” 

Addie smiles. “I already asked Salle during his countless calls. He says he’ll send his sister and Mia.” 

“Good,” Neo says. He finishes his cup of coffee and stands up. He shrugs one of his suit jackets on and follows Addie out of the door. “I’ll go to Phil’s and talk to him about this mission. If Salle calls again, redirect him to my phone.” 

Addie laughs. “I’m sure he’ll like that.” 

Neo groans. “I’m sure he would.”

\-----

Phil’s safe house is located in some high-class subdivision. Neo had once asked him about it. It didn’t seem like Phil’s style at all and Phil had told him it was all about the tech he worked with everyday. Easier to have all the subdivision’s security already in place. That didn’t mean he didn’t have his own security.

Neo parks at the end of the street and walks the rest of the way to the house. He stops in front of the gate and stares at the camera trained on him. “Let me in,” he mouths at it. The gate slides open and Neo steps inside. The gate immediately closes behind him. 

“Raise your hands for the scan,” a voice says from the intercom. 

Neo looks at the nearest visible camera in disbelief. “Is this really necessary?” He says but there is no answer and he sighs as he complies with the order. He gets the clear and shakes his head as he proceeds to the entrance. 

Phil’s brother, Manuel, greets him at the door. He looks ready to leave the base and Neo notes the gun he has strapped under his jacket. “Kuya Phil’s in the boardroom. He’s waiting for you.” 

Neo nods and says nothing else as the other moves past him and into the garage where Neo knows they keep some of the work vehicles. Some personal ones of Phil’s too, he’s sure, since Phil lives where he works most of the time. Neo finds his way up a familiar flight of stairs and down a corridor to stand in front of Phil’s boardroom. 

He reaches a hand out to open the door, hesitates, then, decides to knock after all. “It’s open,” he hears someone yell from the inside and he pushes past the door. Phil is inside the room with a laptop open. There are files open on the screens that filled up one of the room’s walls. Another of the executives, Tomas, was on his phone seated across Phil. Beside Phil, Mia leans over to point at something on the laptop. 

Phil looks up at Neo’s arrival. “Neo,” he greets, pushing up his glasses on his face. “It’s not like you to knock.” 

Neo shrugs. “I don’t want a repeat of last time,” Neo says, giving Phil a meaningful look. 

Mia chuckles. “You have me curious,” she says. “What last time?” 

Phil laughs but he doesn’t answer. “Like the two of you can talk,” he says. “You’re both worse if you ask the right people.” He looks at Neo with a calculating look. “Salle says he’ll be here in a few minutes or so. You can take a seat wherever you want, Neo.” 

Mia looks around the room. “Is this an executive meeting then? Should I leave?” 

Tomas smirks. “Like you wouldn’t have been executive if you wanted to,” he says. “You could have had any of our places, given the chance.” 

“Or the motives,” Mia smiles. “I’ve had plenty of chances. I just don’t want to take them.” 

“Mia stays,” Phil says, eyes on the laptop. He continues with his work without looking at any of them. “This concerns a job.” 

Neo takes a seat beside Tomas and across from Mia. “A job? With the four executives and Mia? Isn’t that overkill?” 

Phil freezes and looks up at him over his open laptop. “I heard you had a problem with a heist,” Phil says. “This is a very important job and we don’t need any problems.” 

“How’d you know I’ll come here?” Neo says. “You didn’t send me an invitation.” 

Phil laughs at him and closes his laptop. “I know everything that happens in our crew.” He raises a hand, his fingers coming down from each like a countdown. Once his hand was in a fist, the door opens and Salle comes in. He gives them all a suspicious look when he realizes everyone was looking in his direction.

“Creepy,” Mia says, nudging Phil’s leg with the toe of her heels. “Do you watch over all of us like some creepy stalker?” 

The others were giving Phil similar looks. Salle seems to have caught on. He laughs and gives Phil a look of amusement. “We talking about Phil’s annoying spying habits?” 

“Information is my weapon,” Phil says with a sigh. “Just as you have your sniper rifle, Salle. You’re actually later than I thought you’d be and I was helping you out with the stoplights and everything.” 

“You’re hacked into the city’s traffic grid?” 

“What? Like it’s hard?” 

“Show-off,” Tomas says with a laugh as he leans over, folding his arms on top of the table. “How come you never help my runners when we have a delivery?” 

“What do you mean? I have some of my people working on it.” 

“So, what’s the job about?” Neo asks before they get into an entirely different discussion. He scowls at Salle as the other takes the seat right beside him. He leans back on the office chair. “I thought it was a job for the two of us.” He gestures to himself then Salle. 

“Disappointed, Neo?” Salle taunts and Neo scoffs at him. 

“Before the two idiots beside me start making out, tell me what the job is about, Phil,” Tomas says with a too-sweet smile on his face. The idiots he mentioned both gave the oldest executive a sour look which was promptly ignored. “What are we doing?” 

“I’ve gained some information on our enemies,” Phil says, cradling his head with a palm, his elbow on the table. There is a satisfied looking smile on his face which scares Neo knowing the extent of what he can do now. “We have clearance to act and we will.” 

“You know who they are?” Salle asks, leaning forward eagerly. He bares his teeth and Neo is reminded of all the times he’s had to pull the other away from a fight. He’s reminded of the past, of Salle’s hair-trigger responses. They live in a terrifying world yet sometimes, Neo feels as if there is more to fear from his own allies than there is their enemies. In fact, it has been a while, years maybe, since any of them have needed to gather to truly take someone down. 

“No,” Phil answers the question with a scowl on his face. Neo can tell that the other executive is still irked at the fact that he was missing information. He thinks of what Phil had said. Information is a weapon. He thinks of being caught off guard during the heist and finds himself agreeing. The sooner they finish with this job, this group, the better. 

He could also go back to ignoring Salle’s existence outside the regular executive meetings. Just like always. 

“What is it then?” Mia asks the question that everyone was sure to be thinking. “What have you found?” 

“I know what they’re planning to do next,” Phil says. “They’ve sabotaged our plans. It’s time to return the favor.”


	4. THEN: I'm Bad Behavior But I Do It in the Best Way

“Salle, come here,” Neo crooked his finger and Salle stopped struggling with his cufflinks and headed towards the other. Neo was already in his suit, looking like he could easily blend with the crowd later at the charity ball. Neo ran a hand through his own hair, looking at the mirror to make sure it stayed in place, before he turned towards Salle. 

“What?” Salle asked, scowling. 

Neo laughed and reached out for Salle’s tie. He untied it before his deft fingers made quick work of putting it back in place. “Your tie is crooked,” he said. He took Salle’s hand and made a quick gesture to the cufflinks which Salle surrendered. He helped attached them before his hands went through the motions of straightening the sniper’s collar. “There, now fix your hair.” 

“My hair looks good enough as it is, thank you,” Salle said. 

“Fine,” Neo said with a slight smirk. “Have it your way.” 

Salle shifted uneasily where he stood. “I don’t like this,” he said. He stretched his arms out and shook them. “I don’t feel like I can fight properly like this.” 

“Don’t whine,” Neo crossed the room and opened one of his drawers where he kept his collection of knives. He picked one up, tilting it and examining it, before he looked at Salle once again. “I fight well enough when wearing a suit. You can too.” 

“Tell me what our story is again.” Salle vaulted over the back of the couch and landed, seated on it. 

Neo hummed as he selected the weapons he was going to use, hiding it in the pocket and sewn-in places of his suit jacket. “Well, Phil was going to create an identity for me as an art critic and professor.” Neo picked up a pair of glasses from the top of the dresser and turned back to Salle with a smile. “What do you think? Fits the part, doesn’t it?” 

“And what am I supposed to be?” 

“Apparently,” Neo said as he fixed his jacket once again, making sure that his weapons and tools were well hidden. He turned and smiled at Salle who had stood up, staring at him. 

“My handsome husband.” 

“Handsome, really?” 

Neo walked forward until they were standing side by side. “Yes,” he said. “So be a gentleman and offer me your arm. Behave tonight, Salle. This is important.”   
Salle offered his arm and felt his breath catch in his throat as Neo held on. He gave a grin, boyish and teasing. “Everything is always important and I always fuck it up.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic.”

\-----

The Metropolitan Museum for History and the Arts was located downtown. It was a short walk from the Univer City’s park and was a few streets away from a train station. Tonight, they have cordoned a good section of the streets off for the VIP who would be attending the charity ball that would mark the beginning of the exhibit. Salle and Neo got out of the car in front of the building with Salle carelessly throwing the keys to the car to one of the unassuming valets.

“Bring the car to the station, Benj,” Salle heard from the comm before he offered Neo his arm as they climbed the steps to enter the museum.

Then, they were inside mingling with the city’s upper crust. Salle grabbed two glasses of champagne from a waiter passing by and handed one over to Neo. Neo sniffed the drink before taking a sip of it. “Mia looks quite lovely tonight,” Neo murmured softly as he steered them to one of the exhibits. 

Salle pouted. “Don’t I look lovely?” 

Neo huffed and brushed the backs of their hands together. “This is not the time or place, people,” Phil’s voice was loud and clear in their comms. Neo chuckled and defiantly leaned over to brush his lips on Salle’s cheek. “Seriously, we have a job to do.” 

Across the room, Mia looked like she was tucking her hair behind her ear. “Let them,” she whispered. “Salle can’t do much damage when Neo’s distracting him.” 

“He can’t do much work either,” Tomas added to the conversation with a laugh. “While the rest of us take care of things once again. I’m in position.” 

“Good,” Phil said. A couple approached Neo to talk about the exhibits and papers he had supposedly written. They had to give it to Phil. When he made identities for them, he went all the way and there was no way to prove that Professor Ignacio did not exist. “Salle, you better be watching the room.” 

The couple nodded at Salle as well when they left. Neo turned towards him and touched him lightly on the arm. To anyone else, they looked just like a normal couple enjoying the party and the exhibits. “There he is,” Neo nodded at the direction of a man in a grey suit. The man had greying hair and beard but he was charming enough as he controlled the crowd that had gathered around him. 

“So he owns the exhibit?” 

“He owns most of the pieces displayed tonight,” Phil said. “The job is to convince him to transfer the artifacts where we want to.”

“What’s his name?” Mia asked. 

“Nicholas Haraya,” Phil answered. 

Neo hummed and drained the rest of his drink. He placed it on one of the tables before he whirled and slapped Salle in that dramatic way that was sure to attract the attention of anyone close to them. Salle thought he heard choked laughter from Phil on their comms and he gave Neo a look that said he suspected him of being insane. 

“How dare you!?” Neo exclaimed. 

Mia chuckled and from the corner of his eye, Salle saw her approach their target. Mia’s green sheath dress made her look like some rich heiress here to show off. “Oh, that looks ugly,” they heard her whisper to their target. “I need to talk to you, Mr. Haraya. I have some information you’d be interested in and it would be best to slip away now that the attention is drawn elsewhere, yes?” 

The two played up the argument. The fact that Salle did not know about what Neo was going to do beforehand lent a certain credibility to his own irritated gestures and heated words. They waited until Mia left the room with the target before moving away from the spotlight, from the attention of the upper class that would no doubt find some amusement in that drama. 

“We need to convince him that this place isn’t safe for the artifacts,” Phil said. “Tomas, how is it going on your end?” 

Salle heard the sound of a chopper in his comm. “They’re here,” Tomas said. “Should I proceed?” 

“Yes,” Phil answered and they heard him shuffling in his office, no doubt going around his setup and making sure everything ran smoothly. “We need those weapons for the heist.” 

“I can’t believe we’re running two jobs tonight,” Salle muttered to Neo as they found their way to a locked room. Neo knelt and used his lock picks to open the door. Salle followed him and closed the door behind them. “Where are we?” 

Neo was already going around the room, opening drawers and closing them. “Curator’s office, I think,” Neo frowned. “I hope.” 

Salle looked around the room. “What are we looking for?” 

“Plans for transport,” Neo said. “We only got the plans for the vault and since Phil thinks I can’t do it, we’re going to have to settle for taking the artifacts while they’re being transported somewhere else.” 

Salle nodded and started going through the things around the room as well. They heard Phil mutter something about Neo being too confident and pride and all that. Salle snorted. It figured. Phil was cautious about these things. No doubt, he and Neo already had their argument about it. No need to feed the flames with new fuel. 

“There’s nothing here,” Neo said. “Mia can just plant the idea, can’t she?” 

Phil sighed. “Fine,” he said. “Neo, where are you going?” 

Salle stopped, still leaning over the monitor to see Neo about to leave the room. Neo peered outside and looked back at Salle. “I’m going to try the vault,” he said. “I still think we can save ourselves the trouble and do this directly. Mia, stall him. Salle, stay here. Make sure we’ve left no trace and try to see if I missed anything.” 

Salle nodded even as Phil made an incredulous noise. Salle watched the other reach for his ear and pocket something. Then, Neo was gone, leaving him to find his way into the vault.

\-----

“Fuck!” Salle gritted his teeth and felt another bullet pass so close to him. He cursed as he fumbled with reloading the clip into his gun. His knuckles still sting with the pain from the punch he threw minutes--it feels like hours--ago.

He peered over his cover and ducks down as another round of bullets fill the air. His ears ring with the sound of them. Everything seems to have gone to hell. The static from his earpiece was white noise, a distant reminder in the background. Something he wanted to check on again. Something he has no time for. Something he needs a fucking miracle for. 

Salle counted his heartbeats, counts the silence between each one, between each breath. He lets his mind fall to the usual state, the daze it’s usually in when he needs to make a kill. 

The moment the barrage of bullets stop, he made his move. He vaulted over the toppled desk he was using as cover. He took three of the men down, no bullets wasted. Before they start firing again, he’s already managed to slide behind a column and the bullets cover the carpet with the white of drywall dust. 

He reloaded his gun, hands steady this time and prepared himself for the next round when his earpiece gives a high frequency sound that makes him want to curse and rip the thing off at the same time. 

He does neither and waited for the static to clear while continuously peering around the column and shooting at the men. He hated being trapped in this room. He hated that everything was dragging on, that he hasn’t heard from his partner in a while. 

He hated that he still doesn't know what has happened.

The earpiece finally came through for him. “Status check?” He wanted to put his arm around Phil at that moment. He wanted to tell the other what a genius he was that he was making this work. Salle couldn't do it then but he was already grinning and that should be enough for now.

He just hoped the rest of the plans for their job has been resolved. He held on to the hope that there wouldn't be--couldn't be--any casualties. 

“Salle? Your status?” 

“I just need to take care of something then I’ll meet all of you at the rendezvous point.” 

Salle listened to the others check in with their locations and the situation they were in. Everyone seems safe, everyone--

“Neo? What’s your status?” 

There was nothing but silence on the line. Salle gripped his gun tighter, feels the metal and plastic digging into his skin. He remembered Neo pausing by that door before he left and Phil’s warning still ringing in their head. Phil said it couldn’t be done. Did they capture Neo? The pain on his palm let him focus on his problem, a reminder not to rush too blindly. 

Maybe the idiot decided to toss his earpiece somewhere. Maybe he lost it. Maybe the other boy’s earpiece was broken. Salle remembered Neo removing the comm earpiece before he left the room to shut Phil out and to concentrate. Maybe he forgot to put it back. Maybe Phil hasn’t quite gotten them all connected. Maybe. 

Nothing but assumptions and speculations. Nothing but the feeling of cold dread. 

Mia’s voice, when it comes through the comm, sounded just as worried and doubtful as he felt. “I can go look--” 

“I’m fine.” Salle sighed in relief at the voice, familiar as anything else. “I have what we need.” 

“Neo,” Salle whispered, choked out. He swallowed and tried again. “Neo, where are you? I’ll come get you.” 

“Don’t be stupid.” Salle could almost see the other scoff and roll his eyes. “You’re the one in trouble, aren’t you?” 

“But--” 

“Salle,” Neo’s voice was cold and unforgiving. “Worry about yourself. You’re slipping.” There was a click and Salle almost believed that their conversation has ended. Still, a voice came through the private line. “If you die before we meet again, I’ll find you and kill you. Remember, you promised to follow my lead.” 

The sniper felt almost delirious, laugh threatening to burst from his lips. The other’s words were a challenge and a threat all at once. He held back a retort that Salle had promised to follow him outside of combat and this was definitely a combat situation. They could sort it out later.

He cocked his gun and readied himself for a fight. He was never one to lose a fight. Besides, Neo was waiting for him. If Neo had defied the impossible, then Salle would be damned if he failed to do so as well.

\-----

Salle shut the engine off the bike and dismounted, already searching the garage for his partner. The others were there. It seemed like the other job they were working on, Tomas’ weapons deal, at least went the way it was supposed to. Tomas and Phil were talking in hushed tones while Benj was angrily shouting about the bastards who scratched the car.  
Salle recognized it as the car that he and Neo used to get to the museum and one that the others had used for the weapons deal.

Salle walked around the garage looking at everyone, trying to see if he could see his partner still there. He pulled at his sleeves nervously. He was sure he’d lost the cufflinks that had given him so much trouble before the job. 

He couldn’t see Neo but his sister intercepted him before he could confront Phil about it. Cess had her hair braided down her back and she had a guitar case slung on her back which Salle knew hid her own sniper rifle. Her face was still flushed with adrenaline but she looked him over for injuries. 

“Stop squirming, kuya,” Cess said, irritated, as she slapped him playfully with the back of her hand on his chest. “I need to see if you got hurt. You had all of us worried.” 

“Where’s Neo?” Salle said as he tried to look over the top of her head. “What happened?” 

Cess pursed her lips. “You know, I should be hurt you’re more worried about kuya Neo than you are about me,” she said. She placed her hands on her hips and looked him over. 

“Yeah, kuya, I’m fine. We got the weapons from our suppliers and blew up a rival gang in the process. It was easy-peasy. Not.” She said it all with a tone that dripped with sarcasm but it got Salle’s attention. 

Salle frowned and looked at all the others who took the weapons deal job. The car Benj took was more than scratched, it looked like someone had blasted the doors with bullets.   
The chopper they took for backup looked fine except for one smashed window and the obvious bullet hole in it. His sister looked fine as well, her face a bit smudged but she didn’t look injured. 

Salle looked at all the bullet holes again and looked at Cess. “Did someone get hit?” 

She bit her lip. “Ace got grazed by a bullet, it was an almost thing. Faye’s with him. Arem’s looking over him too.” She sighed. “Seriously, it was an ambush and we barely avoided it.” 

Salle sighed and brought his sister into a hug. “Jeez, everything’s fucked up tonight, huh?” 

Cessie laughed and nudged Salle until they stepped away from each other. “I heard you had an exciting night, too.” She grinned and winked at him. “I won’t keep you away. Kuya Neo’s in the med bay being looked over too.” 

Salle froze. “What’s wrong with him?” 

Cessie rolled her eyes. “Nothin fatal, don’t worry.” She gave him a comforting smile. “Arem thinks he might have sprained his ankle though. You should check in with Kuya Phil first though or he’d be pissed at you again.” 

“Who? Phil or Neo?” 

Cess shrugged. “Both?” 

Salle smirked. “Well, it’s always my aim to please.” 

Cessie laughed. “Fine, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she said. “We still on for the practice range tomorrow?” 

“Sure,” Salle said. “If they don’t kill me, that is.” 

Cessie laughed as she left the garage, disappearing into one of their base’s elevators. Phil was looking at him expectantly as Tomas left to give his orders to some of the new hires and mercenaries in their crew to bring in the new shipment that Salle was sure was filled with different kinds of explosives, guns, and other such dangerous things. Salle approached Phil who was fiddling with his tablet before finally looking at Salle. 

“You had us worried,” Phil said. “Neo was convinced we had to send someone to get you.” 

“I thought someone had to go get him,” Salle answered, placing his hands in his pockets. “What happened anyway?” 

“Either you or Neo had tripped something,” Phil said with a grim set to his lips. “Triggered the alarms. The alarms triggered their system, blocking all communications and such. Impressive security, actually. There’s more to it than that. Anyway, you know the rest.” 

Salle snorted. “Which ended with me having to face a dozen men on my own.” 

Phil gave him a wry smile and laughed. “More or less,” he said. “We lost a car in the altercation the others had too. At least, Neo got something valuable out of that vault and Mia managed to convince Haraya to move the rest of the things in the exhibit because of both your actions. He now thinks none of it is safe there.” 

“So, what you’re saying is, we did a good job?” 

“Sure,” Phil scoffed. “Good job blowing shit up, Salle.” Phil placed the tablet on the table and turned to Salle. “Go see him. I’m sure you’re both itching to go. Better you than the one with a sprain. You can give me your report later.” 

With that, Salle grinned. “Thanks, Phil.” He turned and left. There was someone he had to see.


	5. Now: As the Crooked Smiles Fade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They are on top of the world. That is, until they aren't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for spoiling this chapter for you, Essi.

“Don’t you miss this?” Salle asks as he adjusts the scope of his rifle and braces the gun against his shoulder. 

“Missed what?” Neo asks as he set to tightening the straps of the harness he was going to use to jump from the building and into the next. “I can’t believe you convinced Phil to do this flashy thing.” 

“Flashy!” Salle cries out, indignant. He scowls at the other and Neo wonders when Salle had started looking like that for him. There are hard lines around his eyes and his grip on the gun was tighter, a white-knuckled grip that he would never have expected from the careless, devil-may-care Salle of the past. This Salle is a thrilling cocktail of danger and secrets, secrets Neo used to know that feels more like tarnished gold in his hands now.

“Isn’t it?” Neo says with a twist of his mouth. He shouldn't be unfair to Salle. Salle isn’t the only one who has changed through the years. “You’re having me slide to the next building on a zip line. I know your thing is having fun while working but there has to be a limit somewhere.” 

Salle snorts and falls down on one knee. Neo watches him set up his rifle and he thinks about what Salle said. He did miss this. He misses working together. But, as he watches Salle set up, he realizes they’ve both learned to work alone. That was better, he thinks to himself. Less of a liability that way. Still, he can’t help the slight bitter feeling that Salle has learned to snipe without a spotter. 

“It’s not flashy,” Salle protests. “It’s not like I’m asking you to do it with fireworks behind you, am I? That’s the kind of shit that’s flashy not a zipline to the other building.” 

“Whatever you say,” Neo says. Their earpiece turns on and they hear the others already discussing what they are planning on doing. 

“Are the two of you done arguing?” Mia asks

“Did you turn off our comms?” Neo shoots back.

Phil laughs. “Neo, no one wants to hear you both bickering with each other,” he says. They hear typing from his side of the comms and the two look at each other, for once agreeing that those words were insults rather than anything else. 

“Everyone ready?” Tomas asks. Neo checks over his harness once again, making sure that all was right with it before he answers in the affirmative. He watches Salle pull the bolt on his rifle and the distinct click of it that was familiar and awful all at once. 

“Ready to go,” Salle drawls, his lips pulling into a smirk. 

“Alright,” Phil says. “Let’s do this.”

\-----

“So, would you rather turn your life into a video game or a reality tv show?” Salle asks as he settles on his spot. Neo left minutes ago and he could hear Phil muttering to himself as he hacks into whatever system they need.

“The cameras are cleared for now, Neo. You’ve got two minutes,” Phil says. There is a pause before he answers Salle’s question. “That depends on what kind of game or show it is.” 

Mia laughs. Salle could see her in the party across the street, going around the place. The garden and pool on the building’s lower roof had people scattered around them but Salle could easily pick them out from his position on the building across the street. Mia stares at where she probably thought he was and smiles. He wonders at her ability to pick them out anywhere without a scope. 

“Is this another one of your stupid questions?” Neo asks. Salle couldn’t see him and, though, he knows Neo is supposed to be inside the building, he couldn’t help but feel worried. The fact that they still had no intel on who they were facing weighed heavily on all of them. He was only trying to lighten the mood.

Salle pouts even though Neo would not be able to see it. “Just answer the question.”

“I’d still say video games,” Tomas says. Salle couldn’t see him either but Tomas’ job tonight required for him to be underground where they suspect the vaults to be for their opponent’s mark. “TV shows are too much drama.” 

“Ah, but that’s what makes it fun,” Mia says and Salle sees her take a glass of champagne from a waiter. “Anything from any of you? Isn’t it weird they haven’t shown up?” 

“They’re not stupid,” Phil remarks. “There’s a guard coming your way, Tomas. Take care of it. Neo, how is it? Did you find the mark’s office?” 

Neo sighs. “Not yet,” he says. 

“Come on, guys, you’ve got to answer my question,” Salle says. He scans the crowd in the party for anyone suspicious. He narrows his eyes. There. Maybe. Possibly. “Mia, someone’s approaching you.” 

“Enemy?” 

“I wouldn’t know,” Salle says. “7 o’clock.” 

“Found it,” Neo says. “There’s an electronic lock.” 

“I’m sending you the key now,” Phil returns. 

“Uh, guys, there might be some trouble,” Salle warns as he got ready to shoot the person talking to Mia. Mia is signalling at him to wait but she also signalled that they might have found their target. This is where it begins.

\-----

“Enjoying the party, love?”

Mia eyes the newcomer Salle warned her about. He looks strange to her, too much like the businessmen around them, but so much that it made him look like he is playing pretend. He looks too perfect. His hair is coiffed and his smile sharp. There is something about him that reminds her of the unfeeling androids in some of the films she watched with Phil. 

He is a world away from the rest of them who were usually more comfortable with shirt and jeans even when they were working. Mia and Neo are the exceptions but it was usually the two of them who acted as the frontman of the organization. They had to look their best. 

“Perhaps,” Mia replies smoothly. “It is a bit lonely, coming alone.” 

“Oh, I doubt you came alone, miss,” the young man says. She sees him glance at a distance over her shoulder and she is suddenly so aware of Salle watching her from the rooftop at that same area. “Didn’t you bring the rest of your friends over?” 

“What about you?” Mia shoots back. 

He gives a casual shrug. Mia signals Salle about a possible danger with a hand behind her back. “Oh,” he says with a saccharine smile that was too perfect to be natural. “They’re here and there.” 

She hears Neo get to his destination and she wonders if she could warn the others that there might be danger. The way he spoke of it and the calm and confident way this man is regarding her was making Mia think that they’ve got this wrong. She’s never doubted information from Phil before but the man seemed too confident to be caught off guard by another crew in a job. 

“Uh, guys, there might be some trouble,” Salle says and Mia signals for him to wait, not to shoot just yet. She almost smiles as she remembers Salle’s trigger-happy self from years back.

“You’re telling me,” Tomas says with a scoff. Gunshots. Mia hears gunshots from his end and wonders what happened. “There weren’t supposed to be any guards in here.” 

“Were you expecting us?” Mia asks the man, the stranger, well aware that they were flying blind. She wonders if this was what their enemies felt when the rest of them had the might of Phil’s hacking and information behind them.

“Neo?” Salle is asking, something frantic and angry in his voice. “Neo, I swear to God, if you’re not answering because you’re annoyed at me or something, I will fucking kill you. Are you alright?” 

“I’m fine,” Neo snaps. “Just something unexpected.”

“And that is?” 

Mia could almost hear the grimace in Neo’s voice. “Pressure plate.” Salle curses and on any other day, they would all be teasing the two about their issues with each other. But, this wasn’t any other day. 

“There’s something wrong,” Phil says, his breath hitching and Mia could hear the tap of his fingers on the keys, could imagine him facing his setup, eyes scanning the monitor frantically. 

“Phil?” Mia asks, eyes still trained on the stranger. She isn’t letting the bastard out of her sight until they had things sorted out. But, there was no use hiding anything. The manic grin on his face told her he knew all about it anyway. Their cover was blown or maybe it was never there in the first place. Whatever the case, maybe it would be better to pull the plug from this job.

“There’s something,” Phil stops and for a moment, Mia thinks it might have been one of Phil’s momentary pause when he’s had a sudden discovery. There is a high-pitched feedback on their comms and Mia winces before removing it from her ear. When she put it back, she could hear nothing at all. She glares at the man in front of her and he answers with a grin.

“You finally have it,” the stranger says. He offers his hand and waits until she takes it. They shake their hands and he gives her a wide grin that seems more genuine than his earlier smiles. “My name’s Harvey and your playing on our turf now.”

\-----

Salle felt the presence creeping around behind him and decides that the matter of the malfunctioning comm could wait for later. He turns just in time to dodge a punch and to deliver one of his own.

A mercenary, or rather, mercenaries, Salle thinks as he fights against the three men. He knees one in groin. A dirty move, really. But, he’s learned not to be above any unfair moves long ago. He has principles but not those kind of principles. Salle’s principles kept him alive and sometimes, that meant not playing fairly.

He grabs his rifle and uses the butt of the gun to hit one man on the head before he delivers a punch to the other one’s gut. Then, he uses the gun as a bat to hit him behind the head as he was doubled over in pain. The other one tries to attack him and Salle uses the man’s own momentum to push him over the edge of the building. 

Salle looks over the edge and smirks. He couldn’t see the mercenary anymore but that wasn’t his problem anymore either. He braces the rifle on his shoulder again and looks down at the party across the street. He cannot see Mia anywhere anymore and he curses. 

He takes the earpiece he’d taken off after the screeching feedback and tries the comm. Nothing. No one is answering. There is nothing at all and he is starting to feel a sick sense of deja vu from one of their jobs before they became the executives of their crew. That job almost killed them then and he swallows as he realizes that this might kill them now. 

He curses once again and shoulders his rifle. He needs to find the others soon. He has a feeling the night was far from over.

\-----

Neo glares at his foot, still stuck on the stupid pressure plate that would trigger what he thinks would be a bomb, killing him in the process. He feels annoyed at himself for the mistake. It is such a rookie mistake and it would be something Salle would hold against him later.

The comms are strangely silent, he thinks. He heard the screech moments ago, of course, but he trusts Phil. Normally, Phil would have gotten all of them back online by now. It reminds him of years and, just as quickly, he banishes the thought from his head. He doesn’t need a reminder of years ago. He already has so much to worry about in his present. 

Neo hears the click of a gun’s safety and he glances over his shoulder. “Ah,” the girl with the gun says with a brilliant smile on her face. “We caught a rat in the trap. Shall I exterminate you?” 

Neo’s hands twitch but he doesn’t dare move. He doesn’t dare do anything to set off the person holding a gun to his head and the trap underneath his feet. Neo flinches at the sudden sound of gunshots, rattling behind him. The girl hisses and clicks her tongue as Neo looks over his shoulder to see Salle running towards them. 

“Stop,” she orders, finger poised over the trigger. “Or I’ll shoot him.” 

“Who the hell are you people!?” Salle snarls, dropping his hand to his side, the gun still held in it. 

“I can’t tell you,” she says, sticking her tongue out at him. “I’m not allowed.” She scowls and rolls her eyes. “I’m not allowed to kill you either. You’re not our target. Not tonight, anyway.” 

“What does that mean?” 

She throws her head back and laughs out loud. It could be comical, really, almost too dramatic for the situation. She takes a step back and they both watch as a wall came down to divide the hallway, keeping them away from her. Salle rushes forward but it was too late and he slams his fist into the metal divider. 

“Salle!” Neo cries out. “Leave it. We have to get out of here.” 

Salle turns to him and looks down at where Neo was still standing on the pressure plate. He grimaces and meets the other’s eyes. “What’s the plan?” 

“I need you to do exactly as I say.”

\-----

“Fuck!” Salle screams as bullets rain on them from behind. He shoots a few rounds from his own guns as Neo pulls him away by the back of his jacket. Their comms are still silent and Salle wonders about the others. Have they gotten away?

The hallway they turn to ends in a dead end and Neo thinks of how easy jobs were when you had someone guiding you. They don’t have that luxury now and he tries to pry open the window at the end of the hall. Salle empties his clip around the corner and suddenly, he’s there beside him, pushing him out of the way to smash his fist on the window, glass breaking around his hand, spilling red over the white of his jacket. 

There is the sign for the hotel’s casino, neon and bright outside the window. Better yet, it runs the length of the building to the overhang on the front door. They can use this. He turns to Salle. “We’ll climb down and find a vehicle.” 

“I have a bike stashed somewhere,” Salle says and Neo doesn’t question it anymore before he climbs out. He hears footsteps from behind and hears Salle’s curses and shouts before he swings his way down from the sign. Salle follows close behind but Neo doesn’t have time, can’t afford the time, to make sure the other is okay. 

Later, he tells himself, later they’ll all regroup and check each other. Later. If there was a later. 

He doesn’t want to think about it too much.

He jumps to the overhang and lowers himself until he is hanging by his hands over the ground and lets himself fall. He drops to the ground running. Salle follows until he isn’t anymore, until he is leading them around an alley, over a fence and behind a dumpster where he placed his motorbike before. It isn’t part of the plan. Then again, Neo thinks of all the contingencies he has over the city and he doesn’t blame Salle for keeping his own backups. It certainly helps them today. 

Salle swings his leg over the green Hayabusa, and turns to Neo expectantly. They are not stupid. They know they’ll have pursuers on them soon. 

“Do you have any guns?” Neo asks and Salle takes one of his semi-automatic pistols from the holster inside his jacket, offering it up to the other. Neo nods and takes it as he also pulls one of his own gun from his own jacket. In the dark of the alley, the pistols look pretty much identical. 

Neo climbs onto the bike behind Salle and they take off. As they expected, it isn’t long before they are being tailed on the highway. Neo shoots at them and Salle is often aware of the steadying hand Neo keeps on his shoulder. 

“Where am I going!?” Salle shouts over the sound of traffic around them. He hears one of the bikes chasing them skid on the highway as Neo blows out its tires. “Back to the base.” 

“Yes,” Neo answers, shooting another round. Salle hears an explosion and wonders if Neo had hit an engine or if the other has changed so much that he carries explosives around now. He really doubts the latter but you never know. “We have to lose them first. We can’t lead them there.” 

Salle nods even though Neo has turned to keep on firing. He puts on a burst of speed and hopes they make it through the night.

\-----

You’re not our target.

The words echo in Neo’s ears as he looks around the remains of their safehouse. The corpses of their mercenaries had been burnt out front and he feels like he’s going to be sick. Salle doesn’t look much better. He looks pale even in the dim light of what remains of Phil’s place. Phil. They still haven’t found him. 

They still haven’t talked of the possibility since they stepped into this nightmarish place. Phil was, no, is an executive of their crew. He can take care of himself. 

Salle kicks down one of the doors and curses. “He’s not here,” Salle finally says to break the silence. They have not encountered anyone since they’ve come in here. Whoever attacked this place was long gone. “No one’s here.” 

Neo grits his teeth and pulls at Salle’s jacket. “We know where he’ll be.” 

They step over debris, over weapons, and tech that Phil would absolutely hate to see strewn about like this. He has a setup. He doesn’t like anyone touching it, Neo knows. His information is his and it is better used when he knows where things are. They reach the control room. Phil’s room. He hesitates, not knowing what to expect. 

Salle sighs before pushing the door open and all Neo wants to do is to shut it close again. Pretend this night never happened. Pretend they are all still the same trigger happy kids they once were in this crew. There was a time where fun and business mixed and it was all well and good. Neo is now reminded why people in his line of work tend to get attached. 

Phil greets them by the wall, except he doesn’t because he can’t, because no one can possibly survive being impaled by that many poles. His arms are outstretched over the wall, palms up, held up by wires while his head was held back by those same wires and knife stuck in his throat. His eyes stared, glassy and empty, at the ceiling. Blood pools below his feet and he doesn’t speak, doesn’t look up. He can’t because he’s dead. Dead. The truth rings hollow and strange in Neo’s mind. 

They were just talking hours ago. It couldn’t possibly be real. 

Tomas is there too, kneeling in the middle of the room with horror in his face as he stares at the destruction around them. He looks dazed and there is blood on his head and Neo wonders if he is injured as well. They were partners once, Neo thinks, like he and Salle were before they decided to become executives, before Phil and Mia partnered up. Before. Before, when they were still kids. Before, when everything was the way it should be. 

Before, when they were all still alive. 

And Mia, he remembers with bile rising his throat, is not here. She should be here, should have gotten out. She is good enough to be one of the executives. She should know. 

Neo doesn’t realize that he’s stepped forward, arms outstretched, looking for someone, something that he could shoot or tear apart for this. He doesn’t realize until Salle grips his wrist tight. There is something cold and awful in Salle’s eyes, the assassin who never misses, Neo thinks with a crazed laugh bubbling from his lips. Salle used to miss a lot, didn’t he? Wasn’t it Phil who gave Salle all the jobs he could use to improve? 

“What!?” Neo snaps and his hand is shaking. “What do you want?” 

“We have to see if anyone survived and get out of here. They know this place. They’ll kill us if we stay.” Salle shakes him and Neo realizes he’s been staring at the body for far too long. They’ve left him in such a dramatic position, he thinks. 

“We can’t,” Neo protests. “What about Phil?” 

“He’s dead!” Salle says and it is the truth but Neo still flinches away from it like it can be undone if he manages to outrun it and leave it behind. What a ridiculous sentiment. Salle shouldn’t be the sensible one. Why is he so calm now? “We can’t do anything now. We have to leave, Neo. I’m sorry.” 

Salle pulls him towards Tomas and manages to drag the other on his feet. They leave the house like ghosts, haunted and tired. They only found one person still alive. Manuel, Phil’s brother, had still been breathing in that same room where Phil was in. 

Salle manages, somehow, to drag them all away and to pile up in one of the cars they’ve left away from the building. Salle leaves the three of them and Neo wonders what he’s going to do as he runs back to the building. The others have passed out in the back seat. Neo closes his eyes and curls up in the passenger seat. He dozes off before he even realizes it and only wakes when the door on the driver’s side has slammed shut. 

Salle’s grip on the steering wheel is tight as the safe house burned like a bonfire, like a warning beacon, in the dead of the night. Neo stares at it then turns his head to Salle’s eyes and wonders how he could ever think that Salle could stay calm. It was there, under the surface, itching to get out. The same fire that now lit up the sky was a manifestation of fury. 

Salle closes his eyes and whispers the words to a prayer. Neo closes his eyes until he feels the car move. He doesn’t open them again until the house and the fire is out of sight.


	6. Then: You Were the Song Stuck in My Head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They play off on each other, each action another challenge to be answered. It gets tiring sometimes.

“I’m going to be an executive,” Phil said as he poured another round of drinks for the three of them. Neo paused and looked up from the knife he was cleaning. He could see Mia, still lounging on the loveseat across them. She did not show any reaction but she extended her hand and waited until Phil passed on the glass. 

Neo sighed and drank. “You’ll be handling the informants and our support team, I suppose.” 

Phil laughed. “You got it,” he said. “You guys disappoint me. I was hoping for a better reaction.” 

Mia sat up and sipped at her own drink. She looked towards Phil with the same haughty smile she used on their marks. It was all an act, Neo thought, but Mia could be damned good at it when she wants to. “You want us to act surprise?” 

Phil snorted and rolled his eyes. “Like that’s gonna work now.” 

“Well, we still could,” Neo offered with a laugh. 

“Not the same thing,” Phil said with a shake of the head. “Anyway, just thought the two of you should know.” 

Mia hummed and Neo could see the plan forming in her head from her smile. It was at once wicked and lovely. Sometimes, Neo thought, if he had never met Salle, if they had never become partners, he could have had something with Mia. Then again, maybe it would have been an all together different world if it had happened. 

“We should celebrate,” Mia said. She placed her glass on the end table and placed both of her feet on the carpeted floor. She clapped her hands until both boys were looking at her. She smiled. “Heist?” 

Neo tossed his head back and laughed, loud and raucous, more like Salle than anything else. Mia gave him a look like she could tell, like she knew how much they’ve come to inhabit each other’s lives, to steal from each others habits and mannerisms the same way they steal from the city that they basically own already. The city just didn’t know it yet but it was theirs, all theirs. 

“I like that,” Neo said as he drains his glass. “Hell, Phil, maybe we’ll get to be executives too before you know it.” 

“Oh?” Phil said in a challenging tone. Neo could think of the handful of times they have managed to goad the other into doing something, into letting the flames of competition and greed consume him. “I’m looking forward to it.” 

“I’m not going to be an executive,” Mia said with a frown. She pulled her hair into a neat ponytail and never offered an explanation as she leaned forward, something eager in her eyes. “So let’s plan that heist, shall we?”

\-----

Salle looked angry when Neo came back from the heist, still high on adrenaline and grinning like an idiot. It felt a little like they’ve somehow switched places. It was weird but Neo also couldn’t help but laugh at the idea, still drunk and giddy from their success.

“Are you angry?” He asked, as he stepped closer to the other. Salle’s hair fell over his face, casting it in shadows and Neo reached out to tuck it away so that he could see the other’s eyes better. Beautiful, he thought and it felt like he was still staring at the fires from the explosion of the C4 they used on the vault they just robbed. 

“I heard,” Salle said. His lips were pressed in a displeased line and his fists were clenched. Neo could practically feel Salle trying to keep his temper in check. “You did a heist without me.” 

Neo smirked. “I don’t have to do everything with you, do I?” 

“You didn’t even tell me!” Salle exclaimed, his fist slamming into the wall. He snarled and grabbed Neo by the collar. Neo couldn’t find it in himself to even feel fear, to feel nervous about Salle’s obvious anger. “I thought we were partners.” 

Neo scowled. “I don’t belong to you.” 

Salle’s hands were at his side, opening and closing into fists. He looked like he wanted to hit something. Neo looked at the wall and reminded himself that Salle already had. Maybe, it was Neo he wanted to hit now. The thought sobered him, at least. “Damn it,” Salle snarled. “I didn’t fucking say you did. Don’t put words in my mouth. I just thought that we--” 

“That we what?” Neo snapped. “What do you want me to say, Salle?” 

“I don’t know!” 

“I’m not going to apologize,” Neo scoffed and sneered. It wasn’t quite funny anymore. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed that they were fighting when he had just celebrated something. “I did nothing wrong.” 

“You kept it from me,” Salle said, his voice quiet, barely above a whisper. It wasn’t something Neo expected from him. Salle was made of explosions and barely suppressed fire. He was rattling gunshots and flares going up the sky like fireworks while they ran off in their cars. He wasn’t quiet. He wasn’t this. “You’re right. It’s stupid. Nevermind.” 

“Salle,” Neo started. 

Salle met his eyes and Neo froze at the momentary look of vulnerability. “What?” Salle asked. 

“I don’t answer to you,” Neo said. 

“No,” Salle agreed with a mirthless laugh. “You never did.”

\-----

“You had a fight with Salle?”

“Already?” Neo glared at Mia who took the seat across him. Neo’s laptop was open in front of him. The blueprints of a building he was taking on for a job was open on it. He was wondering whether he should tell Salle about it. Then again, Salle had taken off recently, going off to do jobs without him. The last Neo heard of the other, he was taking hits and other assignments from Chesca. It felt when they had first met, when Neo was nothing but a freelancer and Salle a mercenary. “How do you already know that?” 

Mia scoffed and rolled her eyes. “I have my ways.” She leaned over the table and he shot her a look. “So, what did you fight about?” 

“Salle was pissed I did that heist with you guys,” Neo said. “He didn’t want me keeping secrets.” 

Mia hummed. “Well, you are partners.” 

“It doesn’t mean I have to tell him everything, does it?” Neo asked. “Besides, he’s being childish right now.” 

“You mean the jobs he’s running for Chesca?” 

“Yeah,” Neo shook his head and played idly with a pen on the table. “He was the one talking about being partners and all.” 

“You were ignoring him for a while in favor of planning the heist with us.” 

“And that gives him a right to demand something of me?” 

“I’m just saying,” Mia said and when Neo glared at her, he saw that she was on her phone. She leaned back on the chair with her legs crossed, looking like nothing in the world bothered her. He was envious really. “Maybe Salle just wanted your attention. Maybe it’s why he’s doing this too.” 

Neo shook his head. “No, he’s not,” he said. “It’s not what Phil told me.” 

“Phil’s involved?” Mia placed her phone on the table with a frown. She drummed her well-manicured fingers on the table. “I didn’t know that.” 

“Salle wants to be an executive.” 

“What?” Mia laughed, a bit incredulous. It was the same reaction Neo had when he heard the reason from Phil about why Salle was taking on all these jobs from their boss. “Salle wants to be an executive? He hates the politics of our business.” 

Neo thought to what he had told Salle. He had wondered, when Phil had told him, whether Salle was doing this because of that. Did he wanted Neo to answer to him so badly? It didn’t sound like him but maybe they didn’t know each other as well as they thought. He didn’t want to dwell on it. “I don’t know.” 

“What’s your plan?” 

Neo snorted and went back to his work. “Isn’t that obvious?” His eyes flicked to his phone to see it light up with a message from Salle. He ignored it and looked at Mia with a smirk on his face. “I’m going to beat him to it.”

\-----

“When Mia told me you wanted to be an executive as well, I didn’t think it would be a pissing contest with Salle,” Phil said, looking disapproving as Neo entered the room. Phil was on his tablet and there were three open laptops on the table in front of him. He placed the tablet on the table and regarded Neo who had paused by the door. “It’s not like you.”

“That’s what Mia said,” Neo replied. 

“Well, it’s true, isn’t it?” Phil shook his head and chuckled. Neo could see the footage from some security cams on one of the laptops. He wondered what Phil was working on. “First Salle and now you, has the world gone mad?” 

“Isn’t it you who became an executive first?” 

“What can I say?” Phil said in a tone that told Neo he was only teasing him. “I’m best of us.” 

“So, do you have the info I asked for?” 

Phil hummed and pulled a flash drive from one of the open laptops on the table. He kept it in his fist and stared at Neo. Neo wanted to hide from that knowing gaze. “You really wanna do this?” 

“Yes,” he answered, thinking that his voice sounded more steady and confident than he felt. 

“It won’t be the same,” Phil said as he dropped the flash drive on Neo’s palm. “Trust me. The two of you can never go back to how it was before if you do this.” 

“He did it first, didn’t he?” 

“This isn’t a civil war, Neo,” Phil said but he had gone back to his setup. It was just like him, always keeping himself informed and on top of things. “Don’t start one.” 

“I won’t if he doesn’t,” Neo turned and pocketed the flash drive. He didn’t see Phil shaking his head and staring at the closed door after he had gone. Neo had an important job to do. His place as an executive may hinge on it.

\-----

Salle was back at the apartment when Neo got back. He was lying on the couch, sprawled and almost falling with how he was curled up on it. Neo placed his bag and keys down on the counter and stared at the sight. It felt like they haven’t seen each other in forever. With everything that was happening, he wasn’t sure what to make of it.

He removed his suit jacket, placing it over one of the stools by the kitchen counter. He loosened his tie as he crossed the room to crouch in front of the sleeping boy. Neo reached out to brush a lock of hair away from Salle’s face and smiled. 

“Neo?” Neo froze as Salle’s quiet voice greeted him and the other blinked blearily, staring at him. Salle grabbed his hand and laced their fingers together. “I heard.” 

Neo frowned in confusion. Salle did not look angry. He looked tired and tense. He smiled at Neo like there was nothing wrong. “You okay?” 

“You’re not angry?” Neo asked, swallowing nervously. 

Salle released their hands and stared at the ceiling. He closed his eyes and there was nothing but the sound of their breathing in the empty room. “I thought about it,” he said. He laughed a bit. “Like you always tell me to do, right? I figured I had no right to be angry. I started it and all that?” 

Neo closed his eyes and knelt down, resting his forehead on Salle’s shoulder. He blew out a breath and hummed in relief as Salle started petting his hair. “I feel so tired, don’t you?” 

“Yeah, fuck, I just took down several hits for Chesca this week alone,” Salle replied, chuckling. “Why do you think you caught me napping?” 

“There would be more jobs if we become executives,” Neo whispered. 

“We’re idiots,” Salle laughed and Neo could feel the shaking of his shoulders with how they were resting against each other. “You don’t have to tell me that.” 

Salle moved and Neo blinked, leaning back, breaking contact. Salle sat up, letting his feet fall to the floor before, pulling Neo gently back up on the couch. He cupped the other’s face and smiled before pressing a light kiss on Neo’s lips. Neo stared at him, a little stun at the gentleness of the action. 

“What?” Salle chuckled. “You look like we’ve never kissed before which is absolute bullshit.” 

“I thought it would be different,” Neo replied. “I thought you’d be angrier when you found out.” 

“I’m done being angry,” Salle pressed their foreheads together. “Look, we can just settle all this, I think. At least for tonight, we can forget about it. Look, no talking about the business tonight, kay?” 

Neo chuckled. “Yeah,” he said. “Yeah, I can do that.”


	7. Now: And May Death Find You Alive

Considering all the death that happened and the problem they were facing, Salle figured he’d feel more down. Instead, he felt alive and buzzing with restless energy. He needed to do something. He needs to do it now. 

But, everything felt as if it was falling apart. Someone had to fix things and as he was mostly fine, it might as well be him. 

He tries not to think of the sight they left behind, of the explosion he caused to clean up, of a friend he was never going to see again. He cannot allow himself the luxury to think too much. If he lets himself fall down that rabbit hole, then he will be as useless as the others.

His sister tells him it isn’t wrong to grieve and he knows that. But, a part of him also knows there will be closure to be had from revenge. 

It would be good once he cleans up their enemies. It will be good for all of them. Until then? His grief will have to wait. 

He leans over the edge of the railing that went around the roof of the building he’s set his camp in. He looks through his binoculars at the meeting that was happening in the abandoned building across the street. To his left, he hears the traffic from the streets below and the roar of the train passing above. The rooftop was still wet from the rain the night before and it has drenched the cuffs and knees of his pants as he waits. 

“You shouldn’t be here,” he says when he hears the familiar footsteps of his former partner behind him. He doesn’t glance at the other, keeping his eyes focused on his mark. 

“I don’t follow your orders,” Neo answers as he crouches right beside where Salle is. “What are we looking at?” 

Salle sighs. He knows a losing battle when it faced him and it has always been the case where Neo was concerned. “I was tracking where some of our shipment went. The ones Tomas said was hijacked.” 

“What was in the shipment? I had nothing scheduled. Some of yours?” There was a pause and Salle ignores the strange stilted tone when Neo speaks again. “One of Phil’s?” 

“Mine,” he answers. “Weapons. Some new toys for me to play with.” His mouth quirks before he sighs but Neo doesn’t scold him, doesn’t criticize treating the job as a game. It unnerves him, suddenly, the steady silence beside him and his hand twitches, wanting to reach for one of the pistols he brought with him. If he charges in, turns this into a battle, into a bloodbath, he might get both their minds off the awful thing that needles at them both. 

“Traitors?” Neo asks. 

Salle scowls. “Some,” he says, bitterness lacing his tone. “No one we know. Not really.” 

“And Mia?” 

“I haven’t found her yet,” Salle says. He realizes what Neo meant after a beat and turns to him with indignant anger. “You think she betrayed us?” 

“They found Phil,” Neo says and he sounds exhausted. He also sounds like he doesn’t believe his own words which is a relief. Salle doesn’t need the responsibility of having to convince him that he’s wrong. He doesn’t need the conflict that it would bring. “Phil’s safehouses are more secure than any of ours.” 

“Yeah, well, they’re good,” Salle says, his hand twitching once again for a weapon. But, there is still information he can gain from this. He’s learned restraint, after all, and he almost laughs remembering an old argument between the two of them. “We just have to be better.” 

Neo grimaces. “What’s the plan then? Killing them?” 

Salle snorts. “God, I want to,” he says. “But, first, we do recon.” He hands one of the comms he was using to Neo. “The place is bugged. Make yourself comfortable. We’ll be here for a while yet.” 

 

\-----

 

Salle is making a list. He’s not quite sure who to include in that list yet but he’s going to find out. 

It’s a hit list. At the end of the day, killing is still what he’s best at. He grimaces at the thought and continues flicking through the surveillance cameras that Mappy had managed to hijack for him. He misses Phil but he dismisses the thought just as quickly as it had come. 

He doesn’t need that distraction right now. Everyone else is already distracted, compromised by their grief. He doesn’t need to add to their numbers. Distractions will do nothing but get you killed. 

The comm cracks to life in his ear and he tilts his head, listening to his team’s secure line. “ _ Kuya?”  _

“Give me your report,” Salle says, fingers pausing over the keyboard in front of him. There’s an empty street on the screen and he grimaces before switching it to somewhere his sister might pass on her way back. He doesn’t want to think about the fact that he wouldn’t have done it before, that he would have trusted in her ability to get back home, safe and sound. 

But, Phil wasn’t even on the street, was in a safe house when it happened. 

He couldn’t be too sure, too safe to do this. 

“Cess,” he repeats when she doesn’t continue. “Report?” 

“I don’t like this.” 

“Problem?” 

“Yeah,” Cess says and Salle could almost see how she would have pursed her lips and frown at him. “Everyone is so tense. Everything we’ve built is falling apart. I don’t like it.” 

“No one likes it,” Salle sighs. “What happened to the job you took?” 

“I killed them,” she says, voice unnaturally calm and emotionless. It’s not like the sister he knows at all. But, none of them are acting like their normal selves. Cess was right about that. Everyone was so tense, so paranoid, so out of it. It didn’t make their jobs any easier but nobody seemed able to snap out of it. “They didn’t know anything.” 

“Dead end, huh?” 

“You should ask Manuel or someone else for help,” Cess’ reply is soft like she’s being too careful about saying it. Salle could understand. What she’s suggesting might as well be the final nail in the coffin. They need to get the broken parts of their crew together and for that they need a head for every operation. They need to replace Phil. They might need to do it soon. 

“Is he the right choice?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean,” Salle pauses and watches as Cess pass by the street cam he’s watching. She took one of his favorite bikes with her and without permission too. Somehow, he couldn’t be angry at that. “What would you do if it was me who had died?” 

“You don’t think he could do it because his brother is dead?” 

“I’m just saying, it might be a little too personal.” 

Cess snorts. “I’ll be the first in a line of people wanting to avenge you,” she says. “That anger can be directed. You know that,  _ kuya.  _ It can be used. Use it.” 

“I’m not,” he stops and licks his lips. He flicks through several traffic cams before settling on a new footage. “This shouldn’t be my decision to make.” 

“Our directors are MIA,” Cess points out. 

Salle huffs. “It’s not like I’m the only existing executive.” He laughs but it comes out stilted, humorless. “And it’s not like I was ever the responsible one.” 

“You give yourself too little credit,” Cess says. “Like, I know you tend to go all in, guns blazing but that was before. You’re the one keeping us all afloat,  _ kuya.  _ Just think about that.” 

There was a click and Salle stares at the camera as Cess passes it once again at a speed he was sure was way past the speed limit. He shakes his head and leans back in his chair, rubbing at his eyes. It’s been a while since he’s had a long sleep, good sleep without any trouble. 

“It’s all a fucking mess,” he mutters under his breath. He reaches for the button on the monitor, hesitates over it for a moment before shutting it off. He needs something, anything, a drink maybe, someone to talk to, someone to feel close to. This was getting to him as much as it was getting to everyone else. 

He shoves the chair back, away from the table, and turns away from it. The slamming of the door could probably heard by everyone on that floor of the safe house. Salle scowls at the thought. Well, they could just suck it up. 

Like he did. Like they all had to. 

 

\-----

 

It feels good to have a gun back in his hand. 

It isn’t so good knowing he was walking into a trap. Well, just goes to show that you can’t just have everything, he thinks with a bitter smile. 

Salle could hear the drumming rain outside as he creeps through the corridors of the parking building. It feels good to be doing something even when he couldn’t ignore the instinctive part of him that told him this wasn’t a good idea. 

He’s learned to trust his instincts a long time ago. He simply chooses to ignore it now. 

Mia should be somewhere in this building. He doesn’t know what kind of situation she would be in when he found her but Manuel had assured him she would be here.  They were all supposed to try and save her tomorrow. Salle doesn’t want to wait any longer so he’s choosing to ignore his own orders and moving his plans up. 

After all, no one has ever claimed that he was ever careful or sensible. 

It would be good to have someone to watch his back though. 

There are guards when he rounds the corner and he shoots two between the eyes before he has to duck behind cover, gunshots rattling the concrete walls behind him and in front of him. He grins and waits for the bullets to stop before turning. One of the men gets several bullets through his chest and he takes down the other two with punches and kicks and a knife to the throat.  It ends faster than he thought it would. That’s not good if only because it’s even more suspicious now. 

It’s too easy. It’s too easy to dispatch any of the guards he finds, to take their weapons and use them against their allies. Cannon fodder, he thinks with disgust and proceeds to cut a swath of bloody murder all over the place. 

He can’t wait to have all this over with. He kicks down the next door he comes across and finds the single occupant of the room. Mia is tied to a chair in the middle of the room and it is all very cliche that he almost laughs. 

Mia only stirs when he finally gets her out of her confinement, taking one of her arms and putting it around his shoulders while he supported her with a hand to the waist. 

“Salle?” She murmurs and groans. One of her foot is twisted and there are many bruises and gashes marring her skin. He thinks that there might be other injuries he’s missing but he cannot tell. His skills lie in taking life not maintaining one. If he wasn’t trying to hide this unsanctioned mission from the rest of the crew, he might call for support, get their medical team ready for their arrival. 

“It’s me. I got you,” he tells her and she hisses as he shifts his grip on her. “Sorry.” 

“‘s a trap,” she croaks out. “‘dn’t be here, ‘diot”

“You shouldn’t be insulting your savior.” 

He thinks the huff of breath from her might have been her show of exasperation for him. It was a recurring thing between him and the other members of their crew for them to be exasperated at his quips in a mission. 

“Anyway, I took care of all the guards so if this was a trap, it sucked as one.” 

She shakes her head weakly and finally meets his eyes. “Not for you.” 

Salle swallows and feels something cold run down his skin. He grips her tighter and prays that the others should be fine. They should be. They could take care of themselves. He knows they could. For now, he has to focus on this and this alone. No distractions in a job. Distractions got you killed. 

He just hopes he won’t be too late like last time. 

 

\-----


	8. Then: May the Bridges I Have Burned Light My Way Back Home

\-----

Salle wished that it could have all been resolved just like that. He wished they could have just have let it go so easily, didn’t let ambition get in the way of their partnership. He wished they ended things on better terms. He wished they didn’t end anything at all. But, wishes were nothing in the grand scheme of things that could have been.

He hadn’t been good enough, hadn’t been good. 

“Here,” Cess placed the glass in the coffee table in front of him before flopping down beside him on the couch, a hand curled around a mug. “So, what did you and Kuya Neo fight about this time?” 

Salle grimaced and took a swig of the drink. “Nothing. Everything.” 

Cess rolled her eyes and stretched out her legs, placing her feet on her brother’s lap. “Because that tells me so much,” she said sarcastically. She nudged him with her foot. “So, come on, kuya, maybe I can help.” 

“I killed one of the informants for his heist.” Salle said, shaking his head. “Admittedly, one of my best kills.” 

“Please tell me he was at least a target of yours,” Cess said, as she stared at him from over the top of her mug as she took a sip. “It wasn’t out of spite, right?” 

“Why would I do that?” Salle tipped the glass he was holding and frowned. “Please tell me you have more alcohol.” 

“Sure,” Cess said. “In the fridge and the cabinet.” 

“Can I get more?” 

“Don’t you have a job tonight?” 

“Busting a small time crew’s deal? I don’t need to be sober for that,” Salle said as he stood up and stretched. Cess scowled and drew her legs up and crossed her legs under her, watching her brother rummage through the cabinet behind her bar and mixing a glass of cocktail. He looked at her with a smirk. “Want one?” 

“Unlike you, Kuya, I won’t work drunk tonight,” she said as she leaned back stretching on the couch, letting her head hang off the edge and looking at her brother from an upside down perspective. “I’m working with the girls on a heist.” 

She slid down the couch until her head rested on the arm, staring at the ceiling. Cess could hear the clattering sound of Salle going through the collection of drinks she had. The mug was warm where she held it balanced above her stomach. 

“Kuya?” She called out after a few silent moments have passed where she could only guess he’s been going through some of the hard liquor she kept. 

“Hmm? What is it?” 

“Please don’t finish off my drinks,” she chuckled. 

He laughed as well. “No promises, Cessie,” he said. 

She placed the mug on the floor beside the couch and turned over on her stomach until she could look at her brother from over the arm of the couch. Salle did have several bottles out and a glass that was just about to be emptied. “You suck and I’m not calling anyone if you poison yourself.” 

“Good,” he scoffed. “We’ll see what Neo thinks about that.” 

Cess sighed. She wondered if she could call Neo about her brother but knowing about the problem also meant knowing that it could just make it worse. Their business always made sure that they knew that things, good things really, did not last for long. Her brother was an adult. He should know that. He should be able to take care of himself and the consequences of his actions. 

That didn’t mean he had to do it alone. She found her phone in between the couch cushions and began to write a message to their group chat telling them she couldn’t make it tonight. They could find another sniper but her kuya didn’t have another sister.

\-----

The gun range was empty except for his reckless partner. Neo thought he knew why when he saw the expression on Salle’s face as he emptied his clip on the target. The gunshots were deafening and Neo winced at the noise.

He moved towards the other only to stop short at the gun that was suddenly pointed at him. He stared down the barrel, unflinching and met the eyes of his partner. 

“You’ve been avoiding me,” Neo said. 

“Oh, you noticed?” Salle scowled. “Congratulations.” 

Neo matched the scowl and crossed his arms over his chest. “We’re just being childish now.” 

“Wow,” Salle laughed mockingly. He turned back to the table, reloading his gun. “It’s just a day for you to point out the obvious, isn’t it?” 

Neo took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, Salle was staring at him with furrowed brows and pinched mouth. Salle holstered the gun and ran his fingers through his hair. “We’re a mess, aren’t we?” 

“I thought we weren’t pointing out the obvious,” Neo said. 

Salle laughed, without the sharp mocking tone of before. This one rang hollow and Neo could see the look of exhaustion on the other’s face. “Always been a hypocrite.” 

“So,” Neo tried and stopped. He looked around the room, trying to look at anywhere but Salle. The air felt empty and stifling. They should never have gotten like this. It was a mistake, getting involved with someone in the business, mixing work with pleasure and hoping that they would still come out whole at the end of it all. Maybe if they had some other job, it would have worked. Maybe if they hadn’t built their empire on blood and gunfire, they wouldn’t have ended up staring at each other with dead air all around, just a breath away from the very violence they delivered to their enemies. 

“So,” Salle returned. He shrugged his jacket on and stepped in front of Neo. He was close enough that Neo could feel the heat from his body, could see the bandages peeking out from the collar of his shirt and the small cut on his cheek. He wondered if one of the jobs he took alone gave him those. 

Neo wondered if he could have stopped any of it. “I’m an executive now.” 

“Yeah, you are,” Salle said. “What now?” 

“Do you still want to be an executive?” 

“I’ll always be your equal, Neo,” He said, his grin crooked and wide. “Why wouldn’t I want to be at the top with you?” 

Neo swallowed. “It means we won’t be partners anymore.” 

“Don’t lie to yourself,” Salle shook his head. “We haven’t been for a while. We haven’t done a job together in months. Hell, we haven’t seen each other for weeks. This partnership is over.” 

“Just like that?” 

“Just like that,” Salle agreed and when he did, his voice was a soft murmur. He leaned down and placed a kiss on Neo’s cheek. “I did mean it. Congratulations. I’m happy for you. I thought maybe we could make this work.” 

Neo stopped him, gripping the other by the wrist. “Maybe we can. When we started, you promised me that we’ll be kings of this city. Now I am and you will be too. Why can’t we be together then?” 

“Do you remember what you told me the first time I kissed you?” 

Neo shook his head. 

“You told me that in our work, being together meant having a liability your enemies could use against you. We weren’t anyone then, just kids trying to make it to the big leagues. How much more trouble do you think there will be for executives?” 

Neo rolled his eyes. He moved his hands and laid it on his chest, could feet the steady beating of Salle’s heart under his right hand. “You’re not supposed to be the sensible one.” 

“I’m not,” Salle groaned. “This is a one off.” 

“Good,” Neo smiled. “So is this.” 

Neo felt Salle freeze, startled as he pressed their lips together. He felt Salle’s arms wrap around him and how they fit each other like some familiar puzzle. He thought of the thousand times they’ve almost died, of how much of a miracle it was that they were still alive, how he could not let this go, at least not for tonight. 

“What’s that about?” Salle said, breathless as they parted. He rested their foreheads together. “Did we somehow switch tonight?” 

“One more night, one more job, just you and me,” Neo got it all out in a rush. He was just as breathless as the other. “Are you in?”

Salle grinned. “Did you even have to ask?” 

Neo threw his head back and laughed, his hand was still mapping the steady rhythm of Salle’s heartbeat, just as he would keep listening to his voice later that night over comms as they literally burned bridges in their city, caused mayhem after mayhem until the city cowered in fear. 

This was their city. This was their night. They would be remembered. They would remember.   
They would be kings. They were together and together they were unstoppable. 

And one day? One day, they might remember the night of burnt bridges and their old apartment burning all around them as they ziplined to the next building, flying through the air like they actually had wings. They’ll remember the explosions and the air and smoke in their lungs, and their voices screaming at each other. They’ll remember the endless drive to nowhere and the pitstop at some drive through, greasy food passed between them as they watched their city burn from afar. 

For one night, the fires burn bright and they were together, and they were not yet kings but they were home.


End file.
